Ieq Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Ieq Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 37,339 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,548,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,783,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $228,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,929 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,311,000 after purchasing an additional 986 shares during the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 604 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.3% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,291 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,518 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VRTX. UBS Group increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $590.00 to $595.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $436.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $560.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $563.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.4%

VRTX opened at $548.05 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $374.17 and a 1-year high of $555.32. The company has a market capitalization of $139.10 billion, a PE ratio of 31.90, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.30. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $492.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $465.92.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.74 by ($0.01). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.09% and a net margin of 35.00%.The business had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total transaction of $787,485.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 45,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,793,071.79. The trade was a 3.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 4,062 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $1,827,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 16,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,628,850. The trade was a 19.33% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 10,464 shares of company stock valued at $4,959,397. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.