Independent Advisor Alliance Increases Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Independent Advisor Alliance raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 89.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,228 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,054 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $897,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Curi RMB Capital LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.7% during the third quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 1,580 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $735,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 62.7% in the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,817 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,310,000 after purchasing an additional 1,086 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.9% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 80,102 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $37,254,000 after purchasing an additional 4,432 shares during the period. Coastline Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 13.1% in the third quarter. Coastline Trust Co now owns 6,579 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,060,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares during the period. Finally, Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% in the third quarter. Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. now owns 1,523 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $708,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of VRTX opened at $504.77 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88. The company has a market cap of $129.62 billion, a P/E ratio of -229.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $457.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $461.89.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. As a group, analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total transaction of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $506.70.

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.