AIA Group Ltd Has $12.05 Million Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

AIA Group Ltd cut its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,915 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 871 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $12,047,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ABC Arbitrage SA acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $1,510,000. Czech National Bank increased its position in shares of 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 raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 5,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,324,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 12,631 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 75.5% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,468 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $994,000 after purchasing an additional 1,062 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded down $0.08 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $484.74. 1,249,029 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,281,264. The company has a market cap of $124.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -220.34, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $478.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $463.67. 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 current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 EPS 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on VRTX. Bank of America upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their price target for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $509.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total transaction of $142,547.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,438,776.43. This represents a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

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.