Ourania Tatsis Sells 310 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 $29,438,776.43. This trade represents a 0.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX stock traded down $2.02 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $453.20. 1,137,886 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,577,772. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $116.71 billion, a PE ratio of -227.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $435.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $461.85. 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) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $33,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price objective for the company. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $505.96.

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.