Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by GraniteShares Advisors LLC

GraniteShares Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,464 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 219 shares during the quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $992,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Arkadios Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at approximately $312,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 64.5% during the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 102 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.7% during the third quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 1,926 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $896,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 75,350 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,044,000 after acquiring an additional 2,221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orrstown Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.7% during the third quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. now owns 699 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $325,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $480.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $123.35 billion, a P/E ratio of -218.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $436.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $460.77.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the topic of a number of 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 research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $506.70.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value 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. The trade was a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.