Natixis Advisors L.P. Purchases 266 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Natixis Advisors L.P. boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 0.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 319,476 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. owned 0.12% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $129,991,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. abrdn plc increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 196.0% in the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 581,018 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $236,410,000 after purchasing an additional 384,730 shares during the period. BSN CAPITAL PARTNERS Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $81,378,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,944,913 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,605,146,000 after purchasing an additional 147,248 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,813,563 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $978,388,000 after purchasing an additional 131,539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21,750.1% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 115,150 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $46,853,000 after purchasing an additional 114,623 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $515.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $508.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Guggenheim upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and upped their price target for the company from $332.00 to $379.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $429.45.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX traded down $1.03 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $401.11. 524,599 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,218,421. The firm has a market capitalization of $103.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 3.99 and a quick ratio of 3.78. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $410.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $399.54. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $320.01 and a 1 year high of $448.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced 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. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 21.91% and a net margin of 36.68%. The company had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.33 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,804,930.80. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 75,718 shares in the company, valued at $31,819,732.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total value of $150,697.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at $23,755,762.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $1,804,930.80. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,819,732.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.