Ascent Group LLC Grows Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Ascent Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,033 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 416 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,234,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Annapolis Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth $27,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.1 %

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $462.88 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $341.85 and a fifty-two week high of $510.64. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $479.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $453.85. The stock has a market cap of $119.45 billion, a PE ratio of 30.04 and a beta of 0.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.74% and a negative return on equity of 2.45%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.53 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.34, for a total value of $1,111,135.20. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 27,819 shares in the company, valued at $13,557,311.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.34, for a total transaction of $1,111,135.20. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 27,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,557,311.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,217,500. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 31,767 shares of company stock worth $15,768,284 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $402.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 target price (up from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Barclays cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $472.00 to $509.00 in a report on Monday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $486.36.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.