Tweedy Browne Co LLC Trims Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Tweedy Browne Co LLC reduced its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 24.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 40,631 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 12,969 shares during the period. Vertex Pharmaceuticals accounts for about 1.1% of Tweedy Browne Co LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Tweedy Browne Co LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $16,362,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the third 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. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $0.52 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $484.01. The stock had a trading volume of 2,063,769 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,284,425. 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 twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88. The company has a market capitalization of $124.29 billion, a PE ratio of -220.00, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $479.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $463.81.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on VRTX shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $480.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $509.17.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at $30,805,286.70. This trade represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.