Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stake Lessened by Avitas Wealth Management LLC

Avitas Wealth Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,152 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 28 shares during the quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $464,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Czech National Bank grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $22,486,000 after acquiring an additional 3,260 shares in the last quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at approximately $662,000. Concord Wealth Partners increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 32.6% in the 4th quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 3,508 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,413,000 after buying an additional 862 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 289.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 77,393 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,994,000 after buying an additional 57,497 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 342,429 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $137,783,000 after buying an additional 55,739 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of VRTX opened at $488.44 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $435.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $462.56. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -245.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $377.85 and a 12-month high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.67 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Truist Financial cut their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $460.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price 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 given a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $502.58.

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.