Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Stock Purchased by Kestra Advisory Services LLC

Key Points

• Kestra Advisory Services increased its Vertex Pharmaceuticals stake by 46.1% in the third quarter, adding 7,249 shares to reach 22,981 shares valued at about $12.0 million.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of Vertex shares. Analysts’ consensus rating is “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $596.44.
• Vertex reported quarterly revenue of $3.44 billion, up 11.8% year over year and ahead of estimates, while EPS of $4.76 narrowly missed the $4.82 consensus.

Kestra Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 46.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,981 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after buying an additional 7,249 shares during the quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $12,015,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Community Financial Services Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 103.7% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 55 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Pingora Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $563.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $665.00 to $660.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $570.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $595.00 to $619.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $596.44.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.7%

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $550.87 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 2.34 and a quick ratio of 2.74. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $522.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $482.40. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $410.50 and a 12 month high of $568.67. The company has a market capitalization of $139.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.45, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.28.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.82 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $3.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.42 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 30.70% and a return on equity of 21.98%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.80 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.10 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals is a biotechnology company headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1989, it develops medicines for serious diseases, with a long-standing focus on cystic fibrosis (CF).

Vertex's CF treatments include medicines that target the underlying protein defect, such as Trikafta/Kaftrio, Alyftrek, Kalydeco, Orkambi and Symdeko/Symkevi. The company also markets Journavx, a non-opioid medicine for acute pain, and partnered with CRISPR Therapeutics to develop Casgevy, a gene-editing treatment for sickle cell disease and transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia.

Vertex serves patients in the United States and international markets, including Europe.

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