Intech Investment Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Intech Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,202 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,353 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $9,000,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.1% during the first quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 2,368 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $990,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $1,965,000 after purchasing an additional 3,303 shares in the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,345 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $10,313,000 after purchasing an additional 2,576 shares in the last quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth $2,763,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 640.0% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,443 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $676,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total value of $1,075,521.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 30,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,198,300.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total value of $1,075,521.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 30,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,198,300.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,217,500. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,047 shares of company stock worth $16,843,806 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.7 %

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $464.92 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $482.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $451.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.17 and a beta of 0.40. 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 one year low of $341.85 and a one year high of $510.64.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $402.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 26th. Argus upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $505.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $486.36.

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.