Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Raises Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 107.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 49,065 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 25,375 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $22,819,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth $29,000. Stephens Consulting LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management increased its stake in 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 buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $464.56 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $119.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -233.45 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $472.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $474.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $346.29 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. 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 issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.67 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $550.00 price target (up from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eighteen have issued 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 an average price target of $504.38.

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.