Korea Investment CORP Sells 14,438 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Korea Investment CORP reduced its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 6.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 207,108 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 14,438 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned about 0.08% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $83,402,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

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Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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 value of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 67,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on 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 owns 26,512 shares in the company, 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 a total of 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded down $7.64 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $485.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 602,511 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,272,999. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $476.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $463.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -220.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on VRTX shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America raised 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. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $508.65.

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.