Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Has $35.86 Million Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. significantly increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2,237.1% during the first quarter, now owning 73,968 shares valued at approximately $35.86 million.
• Several large investors, including GAMMA Investing LLC and Capital World Investors, have also boosted their positions, with GAMMA's holdings growing by an astonishing 60,572.3%.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals reported earnings of $4.52 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, and forecasts a 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 2,237.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 73,968 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 70,803 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $35,861,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 60,572.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,425,070 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,175,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,421,073 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $11,406,667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,993 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,428,951 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,199,713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,426,746 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,062,442 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,454,373,000 after purchasing an additional 744,680 shares during the period. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6,487.2% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 526,119 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $211,867,000 after purchasing an additional 518,132 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 20.6%

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $374.98 on Wednesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $373.19 and a 52-week high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 2.65. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $454.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $466.81. The company has a market capitalization of $96.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.80 and a beta of 0.44.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.90 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 24.28%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($12.83) earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on VRTX shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Erste Group Bank downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wolfe Research downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $430.00 to $405.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $495.21.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.

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