Lewis Asset Management LLC Acquires Shares of 750 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Lewis Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 750 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $302,000.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $502.58.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $8.79 during trading on Monday, hitting $470.47. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,497,208 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,578,944. The company has a 50-day moving average of $434.55 and a 200-day moving average of $462.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The firm has a market cap of $121.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -236.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.67 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.93 earnings per share for the current year.

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.