Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Reduces Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 11.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 46,786 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 6,015 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $21,211,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% in the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% in 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 period. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Archer Investment Corp raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 89.7% during the fourth quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 74 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 6,988 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total transaction of $3,144,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 26,088 shares in the company, valued at $11,739,600. This trade represents a 21.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at 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 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 completion of the sale, 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. Insiders have sold 13,462 shares of company stock worth $6,095,195 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $435.71 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $110.58 billion, a PE ratio of 25.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $507.92. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $437.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $452.25.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $495.00 to $558.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $466.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $555.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.