Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Position Trimmed by Toronto Dominion Bank

Toronto Dominion Bank decreased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 14.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 131,106 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 21,853 shares during the quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $61,452,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.1% in 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 grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 216.3% during the 4th 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 raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,345 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,313,000 after purchasing an additional 2,576 shares during the period. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at $2,763,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 640.0% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,443 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $676,000 after buying an additional 1,248 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $550.00 target price (up previously from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, August 5th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Argus lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $486.36.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total value of $2,689,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,320,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was 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 directly owns 23,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,088,728.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total value of $2,689,860.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,320,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 31,767 shares of company stock worth $15,768,284 in the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $461.76 on Thursday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $341.85 and a 52 week high of $510.64. The firm has a market cap of $119.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.96 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. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $481.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $453.10.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $2.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.53 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.