iA Global Asset Management Inc. Sells 404 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

iA Global Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 40,862 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 404 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $16,455,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $1,510,000. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $22,486,000 after buying an additional 3,260 shares during the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 5,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,324,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 61,161 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $24,630,000 after buying an additional 12,631 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 75.5% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,468 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $994,000 after acquiring an additional 1,062 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $512.52 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $464.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $462.31. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market cap of $131.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -232.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. Equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total transaction of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $407.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $506.70.

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.