Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Position Increased by Morse Asset Management Inc

Morse Asset Management Inc increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,555 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after buying an additional 578 shares during the period. Vertex Pharmaceuticals comprises about 1.0% of Morse Asset Management Inc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Morse Asset Management Inc's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,250,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $11,406,667,000 after buying an additional 1,514,993 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,258,288 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $9,366,113,000 after buying an additional 98,654 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in shares of 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 worth $4,199,713,000 after buying an additional 1,426,746 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,916,084 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,382,407,000 after buying an additional 1,117,214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,772,789 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,519,302,000 after buying an additional 704,575 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX stock traded up $4.27 during trading on Friday, hitting $438.65. The company had a trading volume of 1,505,089 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,409,926. The firm has a market capitalization of $112.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -199.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.51. The business has a 50 day moving average of $483.97 and a 200 day moving average of $464.73. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.23). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.76 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 530 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.34, for a total transaction of $251,930.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,825,928.26. The trade was a 0.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,005 shares of company stock valued at $1,978,465. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on VRTX. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $535.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $462.00 to $464.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $460.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $515.04.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.