Great Lakes Advisors LLC Sells 27 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 792 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 27 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $319,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the period. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on VRTX. Scotiabank increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $506.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total transaction of $142,547.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares in the company, valued at $29,438,776.43. This trade represents a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at $13,256,000. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $504.77 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $377.85 and a 12-month high of $519.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $129.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -229.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $457.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $461.70. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. On average, analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current 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.