Westview Management dba Westview Investment Advisors Takes Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Westview Management dba Westview Investment Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 6,284 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,849,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% in the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% during the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.9% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 86 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 345.0% during the 3rd quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 89 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on VRTX shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $577.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $590.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $466.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $571.00 to $598.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Twenty-four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $554.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 1,846 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total value of $897,802.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 55,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,026,469.50. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,329 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $481.79, for a total value of $1,122,088.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 35,405 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,057,774.95. This trade represents a 6.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 93,485 shares of company stock worth $43,967,586 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX stock opened at $454.04 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $513.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $115.34 billion, a PE ratio of 29.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a fifty day moving average of $469.17 and a 200-day moving average of $440.72.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 24.30% and a net margin of 32.94%.The company’s revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.98 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.