Stephens Inc. AR Decreases Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Stephens Inc. AR trimmed its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,453 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 95 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,391,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $22,486,000 after buying an additional 3,260 shares during the period. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $662,000. Concord Wealth Partners boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 32.6% in the fourth quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 3,508 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,413,000 after purchasing an additional 862 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 289.0% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 77,393 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $35,994,000 after purchasing an additional 57,497 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 342,429 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $137,783,000 after purchasing an additional 55,739 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total transaction of $142,547.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,438,776.43. This trade represents a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRTX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $566.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Oppenheimer cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $505.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $453.20 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $116.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -227.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $435.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $461.85.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released 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 return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. Equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.94 EPS 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.