Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by Mitchell Capital Management Co.

Mitchell Capital Management Co. trimmed its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 92.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,128 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 14,325 shares during the quarter. Mitchell Capital Management Co.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.4% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 26,579 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $12,361,000 after buying an additional 2,273 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 558 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 475 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $223,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Realta Investment Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $523,000. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 15,206 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $7,072,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on VRTX. Barclays boosted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $407.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Eleven 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $506.70.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 530 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.34, for a total transaction of $251,930.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 58,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $27,825,928.26. This represents a 0.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 1,084 shares of company stock worth $505,512 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $5.42 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $491.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,147,261 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,495,704. The stock has a market cap of $126.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -223.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. 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 twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $443.51 and a 200-day moving average of $461.12.

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 return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. Research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS 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.