Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 422,698 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 19,630 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned 0.16% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $170,220,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 613 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $247,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 155,490 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $62,616,000 after purchasing an additional 30,650 shares during the period. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB now owns 50,000 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $20,135,000 after purchasing an additional 2,250 shares in the last quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 4,166 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,678,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dempze Nancy E raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 24.8% in the fourth quarter. Dempze Nancy E now owns 6,077 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,447,000 after buying an additional 1,208 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRTX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $509.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 530 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.34, for a total value of $251,930.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 58,539 shares in the company, valued at $27,825,928.26. The trade was a 0.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $1,615,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $474.62 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $481.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $463.66. 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 one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The company has a market capitalization of $121.88 billion, a P/E ratio of -215.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current 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.