Havemeyer Place LP Purchases New Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Havemeyer Place LP purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 2,057 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $933,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,440,149,000. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.9% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,689,059 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,836,550,000 after acquiring an additional 2,053,156 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 16,553,281 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,482,978,000 after acquiring an additional 444,990 shares during the period. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $166,317,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 520.1% during the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 381,195 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $149,291,000 after purchasing an additional 319,725 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $446.83 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $437.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $451.93. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $362.50 and a 52 week high of $507.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $113.41 billion, a PE ratio of 26.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.06 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total transaction of $134,746.14. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,086,446.52. The trade was a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total transaction of $469,222.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,729 shares in the company, valued at $8,810,239.58. This represents a 5.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,717 shares of company stock worth $5,309,945. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $590.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $555.91.

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.