Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Bought by China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 7.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 51,810 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 3,545 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals accounts for 1.4% of China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $27,290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VRTX. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $11,975,849,000. State Street Corp grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,871,459 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,896,910,000 after acquiring an additional 141,320 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,247,658 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,613,209,000 after acquiring an additional 35,069 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,086,683 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,533,248,000 after acquiring an additional 29,287 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth $1,509,651,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $540.00 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $522.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $478.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $137.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.28. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $403.16 and a 52 week high of $560.25.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.74 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.09% and a net margin of 35.00%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.52 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.74 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $570.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $590.00 to $595.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $633.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Evercore upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, September 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $560.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $579.81.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated is a global biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing medicines for serious diseases. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, the company applies expertise in the science of human disease to discover therapies that address significant unmet medical needs.

Vertex is best known for its cystic fibrosis portfolio, which includes Kalydeco, Orkambi, Symdeko/Symkevi, and Trikafta/Kaftrio. These medicines target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis for patients with specific mutations in the CFTR gene.