Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by Stephens Inc. AR

Stephens Inc. AR decreased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,453 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 95 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,391,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $566.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 target price for the company. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $505.96.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total value of $142,547.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 64,021 shares in the company, valued at $29,438,776.43. This trade represents a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.4 %

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $453.20 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $435.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $461.85. The company has a market capitalization of $116.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -227.74, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. Equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.94 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.