APG Asset Management N.V. Grows Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

APG Asset Management N.V. raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 189.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 359,285 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 235,265 shares during the period. APG Asset Management N.V. owned approximately 0.14% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $139,724,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Truvestments Capital LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 30.3% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 99 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $900,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Spinnaker Trust raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Spinnaker Trust now owns 1,235 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $497,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,807,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX stock traded up $8.73 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $484.22. 1,574,131 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,325,555. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $484.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $464.27. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88. The company has a market capitalization of $124.34 billion, a P/E ratio of -220.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Oppenheimer lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $512.41.

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.