Empirical Asset Management LLC Buys New Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Empirical Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 1,889 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $879,000.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Capital World Investors increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 25,567,184 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $10,687,339,000 after purchasing an additional 3,761,414 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 61.0% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,743,882 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,401,000,000 after buying an additional 2,176,218 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.2% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,782,374 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,999,080,000 after buying an additional 837,461 shares during the period. Swedbank AB bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth about $277,317,000. Finally, AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth approximately $257,655,000. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $472.00 to $509.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $541.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $550.00 price target (up previously from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $489.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.6 %

VRTX stock opened at $484.82 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $341.90 and a 12 month high of $510.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 2.52 and a quick ratio of 2.26. The company has a market capitalization of $125.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.46 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $473.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $458.14.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.45% and a negative net margin of 4.74%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.53 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 15,202 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $497.00, for a total value of $7,555,394.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 106,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,767,484. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 15,202 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $497.00, for a total transaction of $7,555,394.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 106,172 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,767,484. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at $2,217,500. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,487 shares of company stock worth $14,657,149. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.