Teacher Retirement System of Texas Lowers Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Teacher Retirement System of Texas reduced its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 3.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 118,648 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 3,725 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $46,467,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Costello Asset Management INC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 689 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.9% during the second quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 1,280 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $570,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Newman Dignan & Sheerar Inc. lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% during the second quarter. Newman Dignan & Sheerar Inc. now owns 786 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $350,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Eastern Bank boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.6% in the second quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 1,635 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Washington Trust Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.4% in the 2nd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 323 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $144,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 9,532 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $461.00, for a total value of $4,394,252.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 37,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,391,225. This trade represents a 20.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total transaction of $2,137,455.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 165,105 shares of company stock valued at $73,858,523. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRTX has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $517.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $548.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $564.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $510.35.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $467.35 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $118.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.96 and a beta of 0.31. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $362.50 and a 1 year high of $519.68. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $448.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $427.42.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.58 by $0.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 31.35%.The company had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect 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.