Vinva Investment Management Ltd Reduces Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Vinva Investment Management Ltd lowered its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 73.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,443 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 6,784 shares during the period. Vinva Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,131,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 14.2% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 11,244 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,229,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 22.2% in the third quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 12,013 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,587,000 after buying an additional 2,183 shares during the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% in the third quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 9,402 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $4,373,000 after buying an additional 1,229 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 76.6% in the third quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 7,475 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,476,000 after buying an additional 3,242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 107.1% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 49,065 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $22,819,000 after buying an additional 25,375 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $468.13 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $347.51 and a twelve month high of $519.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a market capitalization of $120.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -235.24 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $472.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $474.48.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.67 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VRTX. Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $503.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $504.38.

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.