Insider Selling: Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) EVP Sells $749,985.00 in Stock

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.99, for a total value of $749,985.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,065,538.68. This trade represents a 3.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Ourania Tatsis also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, February 11th, Ourania Tatsis sold 466 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.43, for a total value of $214,560.38.
• On Wednesday, January 7th, Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total value of $2,137,455.00.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.6%

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $476.90 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $121.15 billion, a PE ratio of 31.11 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $519.68. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $463.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $428.15.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,593,974,000. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.9% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,689,059 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,836,550,000 after purchasing an additional 2,053,156 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.4% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,356,766 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,521,851,000 after buying an additional 1,109,200 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.5% in the second quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 6,151,505 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,738,650,000 after buying an additional 1,089,063 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 17,316,344 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,850,544,000 after buying an additional 763,063 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $548.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. HC Wainwright set a $591.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Leerink Partners raised their target price 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. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.