Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC Acquires 1,967 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 62.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,129 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 1,967 shares during the quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,009,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,783,000 after buying an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.6% during the second quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 1,124 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $536,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 3,392 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,510,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,085,000. Finally, Klingman & Associates LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth about $207,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.5%

VRTX stock opened at $470.31 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $462.29 and a 200-day moving average of $427.83. The company has a market cap of $119.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.68 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $519.68.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.05 by ($0.02). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 24.30% and a net margin of 32.94%.The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.98 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Jonathan Biller sold 1,925 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.43, for a total value of $886,327.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,585,692.17. This trade represents a 8.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total transaction of $2,137,455.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,088,752.07. This represents a 9.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 100,852 shares of company stock valued at $45,787,299 over the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on VRTX. Leerink Partners upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $546.00 to $541.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $411.00 to $441.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.00.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.