Keel Point LLC Invests $229,000 in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Keel Point LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 564 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $229,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 65.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC now owns 2,645 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $920,000 after buying an additional 1,045 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.5% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 432,937 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $150,550,000 after acquiring an additional 26,523 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.3% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 427,001 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $148,485,000 after purchasing an additional 5,514 shares in the last quarter. Machina Capital S.A.S. bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $816,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.2% during the third 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 currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.8 %

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $394.17 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $415.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $396.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.35. 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 issued its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.85 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $2.52 billion for 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 quarter last year, the business earned $3.33 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VRTX. StockNews.com upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, February 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $515.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $325.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $397.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $390.00 to $438.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $424.62.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of the 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,676 shares in the company, valued at $4,066,242.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total value of $150,697.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,755,762.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,676 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,066,242.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.