Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock Position Decreased by Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. trimmed its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 39.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 209,239 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 137,116 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned approximately 0.08% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $84,261,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $11,406,667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,993 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,258,288 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $9,366,113,000 after acquiring an additional 98,654 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,428,951 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,199,713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,426,746 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,916,084 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,382,407,000 after buying an additional 1,117,214 shares during the period. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,772,789 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,519,302,000 after acquiring an additional 704,575 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VRTX. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $535.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $514.91.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the business'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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,805,286.70. The trade was a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of VRTX stock traded up $2.65 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $496.49. The company had a trading volume of 1,503,302 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,524,394. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $489.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $466.28. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88. The company has a market cap of $127.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -225.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50.

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 (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%. On average, research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share 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.