Interchange Capital Partners LLC Reduces Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Interchange Capital Partners LLC cut its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 30.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,036 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 464 shares during the period. Interchange Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $418,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings 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 worth $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,438,776.43. This represents a 0.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on VRTX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Oppenheimer cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price 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, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $506.70.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.7 %

VRTX opened at $511.74 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month 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. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $469.86 and a 200 day moving average of $462.79. The firm has a market cap of $131.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -232.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released 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, research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.