Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock Position Decreased by Raymond James & Associates

Raymond James & Associates cut its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 310,646 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 8,111 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $145,606,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 2,368 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $990,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.4% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 29,897 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $12,497,000 after purchasing an additional 3,999 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 216.3% during the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 4,830 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,965,000 after purchasing an additional 3,303 shares in the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,345 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,313,000 after buying an additional 2,576 shares during the period. Finally, First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,763,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.75, for a total value of $1,086,990.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 23,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,088,728.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 7,073 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $448.00, for a total transaction of $3,168,704.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,920,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.75, for a total transaction of $1,086,990.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 23,259 shares in the company, valued at $11,088,728.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 55,703 shares of company stock valued at $26,615,855 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of VRTX opened at $479.70 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $480.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $442.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $123.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.98 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a current ratio of 2.52. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $340.83 and a 52 week high of $510.64.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.45% and a negative net margin of 4.74%. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.66 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.53 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Barclays downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $472.00 to $509.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $505.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $485.91.

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.