3,750 Shares in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Purchased by ABC Arbitrage SA

ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 3,750 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,510,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on VRTX. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $402.00 to $407.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $505.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $459.00 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $435.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $461.80. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $377.85 and a 12-month high of $519.88.

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 return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were 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. The trade was a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.