International Assets Investment Management LLC Lowers Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

International Assets Investment Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 99.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 636 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 323,990 shares during the quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Edgewood Management LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7,876.3% during the third quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 1,546,370 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $719,186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,983 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $105,282,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 224.0% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 311,643 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $144,939,000 after buying an additional 215,448 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.6 %

VRTX stock opened at $409.56 on Monday. 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $448.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $467.95. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88. The company has a market capitalization of $105.47 billion, a P/E ratio of -205.81 and a beta of 0.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.67 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on VRTX. Raymond James reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $509.00 to $418.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $426.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $490.38.

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.