Advisors Asset Management Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 26,467 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,359 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $12,309,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 25,567,184 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $10,687,339,000 after acquiring an additional 3,761,414 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 61.0% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,743,882 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,401,000,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176,218 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.1% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,550,386 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,581,373,000 after purchasing an additional 851,054 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter valued at about $277,317,000. Finally, AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $257,655,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,435 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,217,500. The trade was a 12.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,987,006. The trade was a 27.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,445 shares of company stock valued at $2,218,394. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $486.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $499.12.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $3.22 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $451.23. The stock had a trading volume of 1,642,925 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,185,861. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $475.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $472.89. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $346.29 and a 12-month high of $519.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

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, beating 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 business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.67 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.