Capital International Investors Purchases New Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Capital International Investors acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 342,512 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $137,930,000. Capital International Investors owned approximately 0.13% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $1,510,000. Czech National Bank raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $22,486,000 after purchasing an additional 3,260 shares during the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 5,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,324,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% in the 4th quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 61,161 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $24,630,000 after buying an additional 12,631 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 75.5% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,468 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $994,000 after buying an additional 1,062 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.0 %

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $492.47. The stock had a trading volume of 1,368,912 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,329,572. The stock has a market capitalization of $126.46 billion, a P/E ratio of -223.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $488.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $465.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.69. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total transaction of $111,034.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 in the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Barclays raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $535.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $514.91.

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.