Broderick Brian C Acquires 5,414 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Broderick Brian C increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 47.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,874 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,414 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals accounts for 1.3% of Broderick Brian C’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Broderick Brian C’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $6,795,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $484.01 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $124.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -220.00, a PEG 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. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $480.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $463.95. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $377.85 and a 52 week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total transaction of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. The trade was a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at $13,256,000. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on VRTX. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price target for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $509.17.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.