Ifrah Financial Services Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Ifrah Financial Services Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,818 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 132 shares during the quarter. Ifrah Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,537,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. State Street Corp increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,816,249 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,495,501,000 after buying an additional 90,173 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.1% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,550,386 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,581,373,000 after buying an additional 851,054 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,798,870 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,231,858,000 after buying an additional 704,421 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.8% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,905,705 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,351,385,000 after buying an additional 159,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.1% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,516,831 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,170,506,000 after buying an additional 100,114 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total transaction of $142,547.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 64,021 shares in the company, valued at $29,438,776.43. The trade was a 0.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.8 %

VRTX opened at $459.00 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $118.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -230.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.41. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $435.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $460.99. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. On average, equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.94 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Bank of America reduced their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $505.57.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.