Holderness Investments Co. Raises Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Holderness Investments Co. grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,316 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 70 shares during the quarter. Holderness Investments Co.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $530,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $510.18 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $466.02 and a 200 day moving average of $462.64. The firm has a market cap of $131.01 billion, a PE ratio of -231.90, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. On average, research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $506.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.