Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Purchased by Banque Pictet & Cie SA

Banque Pictet & Cie SA boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 7.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 12,043 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 788 shares during the period. Banque Pictet & Cie SA’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,850,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total value of $142,547.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares of the company’s stock, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of VRTX opened at $459.00 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $435.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $461.80. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $377.85 and a 12-month high of $519.88. 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 (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on VRTX. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $505.96.

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.