F M Investments LLC Invests $1.68 Million in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

F M Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 4,129 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,680,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Maxim Group downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $457.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $515.00 price target for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and raised their price target for the company from $332.00 to $379.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $397.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $429.45.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded up $4.99 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $404.91. 1,070,081 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,246,031. The firm has a market capitalization of $104.65 billion, a PE ratio of 29.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $413.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $398.36. The company has a quick ratio of 3.78, a current ratio of 3.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $316.43 and a 12 month high of $448.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.85 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $2.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 last year, the firm posted $3.33 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $577,409.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,066,242.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249. 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.