Montecito Bank & Trust Purchases 40 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Montecito Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,659 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Montecito Bank & Trust’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $668,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $25,000. 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 valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $439.62 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47. The business has a 50-day moving average of $435.88 and a 200-day moving average of $464.95. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $361.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $460.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $494.84.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.