SG Americas Securities LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

SG Americas Securities LLC cut its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 87.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 32,960 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,921,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Oppenheimer cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $361.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $494.84.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX stock opened at $439.62 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $377.85 and a 1 year high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $113.21 billion, a PE ratio of -220.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.40. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $435.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $464.51.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.67 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.