Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Purchased by Townsquare Capital LLC

Townsquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 31.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,054 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after buying an additional 3,616 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $7,001,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. 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. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $600.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Guggenheim upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $361.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $504.38.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.8 %

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $3.57 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $468.13. 770,568 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,189,915. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $347.51 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The company has a market cap of $120.56 billion, a PE ratio of -233.45 and a beta of 0.39. The company's fifty day moving average price is $472.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $474.22.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.67 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.