Summit Global Investments Increases Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Summit Global Investments raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 27.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,974 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 1,062 shares during the quarter. Summit Global Investments’ holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,948,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% during the third quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.9% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 86 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.5%

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $475.68 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $120.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.55 and a beta of 0.31. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $362.50 and a 52 week high of $519.68. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $452.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $427.56.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 31.35%.Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.38 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on VRTX. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $495.00 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $522.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.20, for a total transaction of $28,650,425.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 24,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,792,479.20. The trade was a 72.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total value of $2,137,455.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 165,105 shares of company stock valued at $73,858,523. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.