Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Raises Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,822 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,182 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $11,204,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in 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 in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of VRTX traded up $8.54 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $511.74. The stock had a trading volume of 1,237,571 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,221,134. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35. The firm has a market cap of $131.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -232.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $469.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $462.79. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $506.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total value of $142,547.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,438,776.43. This trade represents a 0.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.