Chicago Capital LLC Decreases Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Chicago Capital LLC decreased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,218 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 74 shares during the quarter. Chicago Capital LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,920,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Edgewood Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7,876.3% in the third quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 1,546,370 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $719,186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,983 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,550,386 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,581,373,000 after acquiring an additional 851,054 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,798,870 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,231,858,000 after acquiring an additional 704,421 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 169.4% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 839,672 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $338,136,000 after acquiring an additional 528,029 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 74,015.5% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 324,626 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $150,977,000 after purchasing an additional 324,188 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on VRTX. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $430.00 to $433.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $502.58.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX opened at $461.68 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The company has a 50-day moving average of $434.55 and a 200-day moving average of $462.93. The company has a market capitalization of $118.90 billion, a P/E ratio of -232.00, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.67 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.