Xponance Inc. Increases Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Xponance Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 58,653 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 562 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $23,865,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Baystate Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.0% during the fourth quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on VRTX. Guggenheim raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $508.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $429.45.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $0.38 on Thursday, hitting $393.48. The stock had a trading volume of 942,996 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,241,552. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $316.43 and a 52-week high of $448.40. The company has a current ratio of 3.99, a quick ratio of 3.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a market cap of $101.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $414.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $396.76.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.85 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $2.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 21.91% and a net margin of 36.68%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.33 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,804,930.80. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 75,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,804,930.80. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 75,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 2,656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $419.51, for a total value of $1,114,218.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 27,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,596,934.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.