Parallel Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,335 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,954,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth about $1,510,000. Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $22,486,000 after acquiring an additional 3,260 shares during the period. Highview Capital Management LLC DE boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 5,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,324,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $662,000. Finally, Davidson Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 61,161 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $24,630,000 after acquiring an additional 12,631 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.8 %

VRTX stock opened at $513.76 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market cap of $131.93 billion, a PE ratio of -233.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50 day moving average of $459.97 and a 200 day moving average of $461.84.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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, research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $1,615,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on VRTX shares. Barclays increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $506.70.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.