Fred Alger Management LLC Sells 12,773 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Fred Alger Management LLC reduced its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 70.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,262 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 12,773 shares during the quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,119,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth about $1,510,000. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $22,486,000 after purchasing an additional 3,260 shares in the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 5,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,324,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Davidson Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 61,161 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $24,630,000 after buying an additional 12,631 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 75.5% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,468 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $994,000 after buying an additional 1,062 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 530 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.34, for a total value of $251,930.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,539 shares in the company, valued at $27,825,928.26. The trade was a 0.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,005 shares of company stock worth $1,978,465. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Leerink Partners reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $503.00 price objective (down previously from $550.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $515.04.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $7.37 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $432.00. 2,645,542 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,400,772. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $487.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $465.56. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $110.94 billion, a PE ratio of -196.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.51.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.85 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.76 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.