FORA Capital LLC Purchases 1,229 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

FORA Capital LLC boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 15.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,402 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,229 shares during the quarter. FORA Capital LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,373,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Stephens Consulting LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 75 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total value of $1,888,216.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,987,006. The trade was a 27.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,217,500. The trade was a 12.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,445 shares of company stock valued at $2,218,394. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $480.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Citigroup assumed coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, November 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $535.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $504.38.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX traded down $1.08 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $465.99. The company had a trading volume of 169,614 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,187,879. The business has a 50-day moving average of $473.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $474.35. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $346.29 and a 1 year high of $519.88. The company has a market cap of $120.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -234.71 and a beta of 0.39.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.