SVB Wealth LLC Lowers Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

SVB Wealth LLC cut its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 60.5% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,123 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,721 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $558,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Community Financial Services Group LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 103.7% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 55 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VRTX. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 28th. Weiss Ratings lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $500.00 target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $665.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $569.52.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total transaction of $787,485.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,321 shares in the company, valued at $23,793,071.79. This represents a 3.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Duncan McKechnie sold 1,541 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total transaction of $799,779.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,001 shares in the company, valued at $5,709,519. This represents a 12.29% 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 90 days, insiders have sold 8,719 shares of company stock worth $4,174,147. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.3%

VRTX stock opened at $514.56 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $511.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $472.86. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $374.17 and a 12-month high of $560.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $130.60 billion, a PE ratio of 29.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.32.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.52 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.88 earnings per share for the current year.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated is a global biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing medicines for serious diseases. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, the company combines research in human genetics with drug discovery and development.

Vertex is best known for its cystic fibrosis portfolio, which includes CFTR modulator therapies such as Kalydeco, Orkambi, Symdeko and the combination marketed as Trikafta in the United States and Kaftrio in other markets.