3,260 Shares in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Bought by Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp

Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 3,260 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $1,313,000. Vertex Pharmaceuticals comprises approximately 1.2% of Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp's holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,258,288 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $9,366,113,000 after acquiring an additional 98,654 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,816,249 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $5,495,501,000 after purchasing an additional 90,173 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,798,870 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,231,858,000 after purchasing an additional 704,421 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.1% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,516,831 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,170,506,000 after buying an additional 100,114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $731,283,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Insider Activity

In related news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $1,615,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 67,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. The trade was a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX traded down $9.86 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $492.69. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,280,587 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,275,535. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.69. The company has a market capitalization of $126.52 billion, a PE ratio of -223.95, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The business's 50-day moving average is $476.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $463.71.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on VRTX. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $480.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $506.70.

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.