Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by Rhumbline Advisers

Rhumbline Advisers lessened its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 442,361 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 7,335 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers owned about 0.17% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $178,139,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VRTX. Mutual Advisors LLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% in the third quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 3,710 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,751,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 892 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $415,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $900,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 576 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $3.68 on Wednesday, reaching $465.79. The company had a trading volume of 345,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,507,737. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.61 billion, a PE ratio of -211.74, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $435.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $460.44.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. As a group, analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on VRTX. Jefferies Financial Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America cut their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. 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 increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $402.00 to $407.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $505.57.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total transaction of $142,547.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 64,021 shares in the company, valued at $29,438,776.43. This represents a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.