Kovack Advisors Inc. Has $585,000 Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Kovack Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 3.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,257 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $585,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Stephens Consulting LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 75 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $472.00 to $509.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $541.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price objective on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $499.12.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,987,006. This trade represents a 27.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at $2,217,500. This represents a 12.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $483.96 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $341.90 and a 52 week high of $519.88. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $476.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $470.48. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.82 earnings per share 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.