Leavell Investment Management Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Leavell Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,509 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 790 shares during the quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,562,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norden Group LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 61.3% during the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 992 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $415,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 33.0% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 399 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $167,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 19.4% in the 1st quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 1,251 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $523,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 12,630 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,279,000 after purchasing an additional 754 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% in the first quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 7,731 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,232,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $516.74 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $133.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -259.67 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $475.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $468.01. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $341.90 and a 12-month high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.67 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on VRTX shares. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price objective (up previously from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped 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. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $495.96.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,217,500. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,987,006. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,217,500. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.