Virtu Financial LLC Purchases 2,839 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Virtu Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 60.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,521 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,839 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $3,029,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Commerce Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.6% in the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 7,443 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,462,000 after buying an additional 775 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,626,347 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $756,381,000 after purchasing an additional 20,361 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.6% during the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,119 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,195,000 after buying an additional 1,440 shares in the last quarter. Edgewood Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7,876.3% in the 3rd quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 1,546,370 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $719,186,000 after acquiring an additional 1,526,983 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covenant Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.9% during the third quarter. Covenant Asset Management LLC now owns 12,764 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $5,936,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This trade represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded down $8.76 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $500.28. 1,328,359 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,221,423. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $471.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $463.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.69. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88. The firm has a market cap of $128.47 billion, a PE ratio of -227.40, a PEG 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 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, equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $500.00 to $550.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $506.70.

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.