Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) EVP Charles Wagner Jr Sells 14,000 Shares

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) EVP Charles Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.00, for a total value of $6,384,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 37,725 shares in the company, valued at $17,202,600. This represents a 27.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.4%

NASDAQ:VRTX traded down $1.88 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $455.48. 911,138 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,600,272. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $420.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $425.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $115.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.12 and a beta of 0.32. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $362.50 and a 12 month high of $519.68.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.35% and a return on equity of 23.51%. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.38 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $564.00 target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $495.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $475.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $498.25.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% during the third quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 450.0% in the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 55 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% during the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% 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.