AdvisorNet Financial Inc Boosts Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,186 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $496,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 30.7% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 5,097 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,772,000 after acquiring an additional 1,197 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 645 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 32.3% in the 3rd quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 13,308 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $4,628,000 after buying an additional 3,246 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 3,592 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,249,000 after buying an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vinva Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 7,997 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,819,000 after buying an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $474.95 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $438.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $423.84. The company has a quick ratio of 3.29, a current ratio of 3.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $335.82 and a 52-week high of $486.42. The company has a market cap of $122.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.82, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.66 by $1.10. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 39.46% and a return on equity of 23.08%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.67 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $555.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “sell” rating and issued a $371.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, April 12th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Argus raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $444.23.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Edward Morrow Atkinson III sold 7,288 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.00, for a total value of $3,483,664.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,634,616. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Edward Morrow Atkinson III sold 7,288 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.00, for a total transaction of $3,483,664.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,972 shares in the company, valued at $7,634,616. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $457.00, for a total transaction of $715,205.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 121,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $55,467,918. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 26,086 shares of company stock valued at $11,983,266. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.