Prospera Financial Services Inc Has $6.28 Million Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 430.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,498 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 10,951 shares during the quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $6,278,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.0% during the second quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 75 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on VRTX. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and set a $600.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $499.12.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total value of $1,888,216.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,987,006. This represents a 27.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,217,500. The trade was a 12.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,445 shares of company stock worth $2,218,394. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 4.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $448.01 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47. The company has a market capitalization of $115.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -225.13 and a beta of 0.39. The company's 50 day moving average price is $475.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $472.89. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $346.29 and a 52-week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced 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 net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.67 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.82 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.

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