Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Stock Position Lowered by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Key Points

• Pictet Asset Management trimmed its Vertex stake by 4.9% in Q4, selling 39,033 shares and now holding 752,425 shares (0.30% of the company) worth about $342.2 million.
• Wall Street sentiment is broadly positive — the consensus is a “Moderate Buy” with 22 Buy ratings, six Holds and an average price target of $555, with several firms setting targets in the high $500s.
• Vertex has a market cap of $109.48 billion and a P/E of 28.08; Q4 EPS was $5.03 (miss by $0.02) on $3.19B revenue, and insiders have sold 80,431 shares (~$37.9M) in the past 90 days.

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lowered its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 752,425 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 39,033 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned 0.30% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $342,202,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,783,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $228,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,929 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $5,311,000 after buying an additional 986 shares in the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% during the second quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 604 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $269,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.3% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,291 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,518 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $590.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $577.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $411.00 to $441.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $580.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $571.00 to $598.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $555.00.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $430.42 on Monday. The business's 50 day moving average is $457.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $449.02. The company has a market cap of $109.48 billion, a PE ratio of 28.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.36. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $362.50 and a 12 month high of $510.77.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.05 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 32.94% and a return on equity of 24.30%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.98 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Mark E. Bunnage sold 620 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total value of $301,537.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,542,573.40. This trade represents a 7.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 4,910 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.65, for a total value of $2,394,361.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,562,646.35. This trade represents a 21.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 80,431 shares of company stock valued at $37,875,167 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex's marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.

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