UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Increases Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 32.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,274 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,017 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $6,554,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,258,288 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $9,366,113,000 after purchasing an additional 98,654 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,816,249 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $5,495,501,000 after buying an additional 90,173 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,798,870 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,231,858,000 after buying an additional 704,421 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.1% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,516,831 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,170,506,000 after acquiring an additional 100,114 shares during the period. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $731,283,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $480.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $508.65.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $4.74 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $489.56. 267,521 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,275,442. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $477.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $463.68. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35. The stock has a market cap of $125.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -222.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (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, sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total value of $142,547.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 64,021 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,438,776.43. This trade represents a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $1,615,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

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.