Larson Financial Group LLC Purchases 69 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 16.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 486 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $196,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $900,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Spinnaker Trust raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Spinnaker Trust now owns 1,235 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $497,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,807,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% during the third quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 641 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup started coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price target for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $506.70.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 2.3 %

VRTX opened at $488.34 on Wednesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $377.85 and a 52 week high of $519.88. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $451.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $461.34. The firm has a market cap of $125.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -221.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. On average, equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This trade represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,084 shares of company stock worth $505,512. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.