Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Bought by Pallas Capital Advisors LLC

Pallas Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 46.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,241 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 1,353 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,923,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% in the third quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% during the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.9% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 86 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the period. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 345.0% in the 3rd quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 89 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total value of $2,137,455.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,088,752.07. This represents a 9.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 58,613 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.83, for a total transaction of $27,479,532.79. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 58,934 shares in the company, valued at $27,630,027.22. The trade was a 49.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 93,485 shares of company stock worth $43,967,586 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Leerink Partners boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $546.00 to $541.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Maxim Group upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $590.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $554.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 4.6%

Shares of VRTX opened at $433.07 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $110.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.25, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.31. The business’s 50 day moving average is $469.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $442.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $362.50 and a 52-week high of $510.77.

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

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.