Schechter Investment Advisors LLC Buys 563 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Schechter Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 23.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,920 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 563 shares during the quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,176,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ABC Arbitrage SA acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,510,000. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $22,486,000 after purchasing an additional 3,260 shares in the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 5,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,324,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $662,000. Finally, Davidson Investment Advisors increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 61,161 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $24,630,000 after purchasing an additional 12,631 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VRTX. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $480.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $506.70.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ VRTX traded up $6.79 on Wednesday, reaching $493.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 541,740 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,480,437. The firm has a market cap of $126.60 billion, a PE ratio of -224.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $377.85 and a 52 week high of $519.88. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $443.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $461.12.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. Sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total transaction of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at $30,805,286.70. This trade represents a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders sold 1,084 shares of company stock valued at $505,512. 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.