Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Invests $30.57 Million in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 61,183 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,570,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Community Financial Services Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 103.7% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 55 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of VRTX opened at $541.69 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $502.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $468.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $137.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $374.17 and a 1-year high of $555.69.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.74 by ($0.01). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.00% and a return on equity of 23.09%. The firm had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.52 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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 directly owned 45,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,793,071.79. The trade was a 3.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 4,062 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $1,827,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 16,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,628,850. The trade was a 19.33% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,464 shares of company stock valued at $4,959,397. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VRTX. Stifel Nicolaus set a $500.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, June 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $436.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $563.50.

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.