Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Bought by Summit Global Investments

Summit Global Investments lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 44.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 74,588 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 23,118 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals makes up approximately 2.0% of Summit Global Investments’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Summit Global Investments’ holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $30,349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VRTX. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 65.3% in the third quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC now owns 2,645 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $920,000 after purchasing an additional 1,045 shares during the last quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,073 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $6,133,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 427,001 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $148,485,000 after buying an additional 5,514 shares in the last quarter. Machina Capital S.A.S. bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $816,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,870,101 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $998,050,000 after purchasing an additional 89,217 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $2.88 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $399.26. 689,790 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,220,122. The firm has a market cap of $103.19 billion, a PE ratio of 28.95, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 3.78 and a current ratio of 3.99. The company’s fifty day moving average is $410.17 and its 200-day moving average is $399.54. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $320.01 and a 52 week high of $448.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.85 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $2.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares in the company, valued at $31,819,732.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 3,222 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,354,013.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,250,727.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $390.00 to $438.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. HC Wainwright upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $457.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $325.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $429.45.

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.