Griffin Asset Management Inc. Lowers Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Griffin Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,698 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 105 shares during the period. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,077,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Annapolis Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth about $27,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.0% in the second quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 75 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $476.75, for a total transaction of $1,086,990.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 23,259 shares in the company, valued at $11,088,728.25. 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 2,350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.11, for a total transaction of $1,031,908.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 53,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,502,484.53. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.75, for a total value of $1,086,990.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 23,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,088,728.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 48,630 shares of company stock worth $23,447,151 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded down $6.22 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $479.89. The stock had a trading volume of 1,106,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,212,105. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $480.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $443.43. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The firm has a market cap of $123.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.55 and a beta of 0.39. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $340.83 and a 52-week high of $510.64.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($12.54) by ($0.29). The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.66 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.45% and a negative net margin of 4.74%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.53 EPS. Analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on VRTX. Argus boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price objective (up from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $485.91.

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.