O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Boosts Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,154 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 472 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $11,740,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,374,948,000. Parnassus Investments LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $731,283,000. WCM Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $435,899,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,772,789 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,519,302,000 after purchasing an additional 704,575 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,798,870 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,231,858,000 after purchasing an additional 704,421 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $480.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Ten 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $508.65.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were 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 $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total transaction of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 67,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This trade represents a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012 in the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of VRTX opened at $484.82 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $477.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $463.68. The stock has a market cap of $124.50 billion, a PE ratio of -220.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

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.