Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $40.63 Million Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. lessened its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 89,399 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 2,699 shares during the quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $40,628,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $228,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,929 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,311,000 after purchasing an additional 986 shares in the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 604 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.3% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,291 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,518 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $590.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $580.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $555.17.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.1%

VRTX stock opened at $436.58 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $362.50 and a 12 month high of $507.92. The firm has a market cap of $110.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.30. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $445.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $450.71.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 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 firm had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.06 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.97 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 6,988 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $3,144,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 26,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,739,600. This trade represents a 21.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Jonathan Biller sold 945 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total transaction of $459,600.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 13,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,643,054.65. This represents a 6.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 79,802 shares of company stock worth $37,402,568. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.