Wealthfront Advisers LLC Buys 32,997 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 84.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 72,197 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after buying an additional 32,997 shares during the quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $29,074,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VRTX. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $1,510,000. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $22,486,000 after acquiring an additional 3,260 shares in the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 5,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,324,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $662,000. Finally, Davidson Investment Advisors lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 61,161 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $24,630,000 after buying an additional 12,631 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on VRTX. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $550.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $460.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $506.70.

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Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,084 shares of company stock worth $505,512. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX stock opened at $488.34 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $451.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $461.34. 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 market capitalization of $125.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -221.97, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 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.

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