Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Sold by State of Wisconsin Investment Board

State of Wisconsin Investment Board lowered its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 137,909 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 10,440 shares during the period. State of Wisconsin Investment Board’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $62,522,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% during the 4th quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 30th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Maxim Group upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $555.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $453.17 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $437.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $452.82. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $362.50 and a 12-month high of $507.92. The stock has a market cap of $115.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.88, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.06 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total value of $134,746.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,086,446.52. This represents a 6.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 6,988 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total transaction of $3,144,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 26,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,739,600. The trade was a 21.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 11,133 shares of company stock worth $4,973,106. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.