Commerce Bank Boosts Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Commerce Bank boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 11.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,443 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 775 shares during the period. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $3,462,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at $277,317,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth $257,655,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 74,015.5% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 324,626 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $150,977,000 after purchasing an additional 324,188 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.4% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,584,315 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,080,296,000 after buying an additional 244,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $105,282,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX stock opened at $450.97 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $474.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $472.92. The firm has a market cap of $116.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -226.62 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $346.29 and a 1 year high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The business’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.67 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $472.00 to $509.00 in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $361.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $504.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at $4,987,006. This trade represents a 27.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the company’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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,217,500. The trade was a 12.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,445 shares of company stock valued at $2,218,394 in the last ninety days. 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.