Evoke Wealth LLC Raises Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Evoke Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,071 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 83 shares during the quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $431,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,510,000. Czech National Bank raised its stake in 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 in the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during 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 period. Davidson Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% during 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 period. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 75.5% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,468 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $994,000 after acquiring an additional 1,062 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $512.52 on Thursday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88. 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 stock has a market cap of $131.61 billion, a PE ratio of -232.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $464.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $462.31.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on VRTX shares. Barclays upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of 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. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $408.00 to $424.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $506.70.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at $30,805,286.70. This trade represents a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,256,000. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.