Certuity LLC Has $2.12 Million Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Certuity LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 10.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,519 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the period. Certuity LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,118,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Brookstone Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 2,368 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $990,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 216.3% during the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 4,830 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,965,000 after acquiring an additional 3,303 shares during the period. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,345 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,313,000 after acquiring an additional 2,576 shares in the last quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,763,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 640.0% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,443 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $676,000 after acquiring an additional 1,248 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of VRTX opened at $468.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $120.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.37 and a beta of 0.40. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $341.85 and a 1 year high of $510.64. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $483.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $448.57. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.45% and a negative net margin of 4.74%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.53 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on VRTX. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Barclays downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $472.00 to $509.00 in a report on Monday, August 5th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $402.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $485.91.

Insider Activity

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Edward Morrow Atkinson III sold 7,288 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.00, for a total value of $3,483,664.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,972 shares in the company, valued at $7,634,616. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total value of $2,689,860.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,320,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Edward Morrow Atkinson III sold 7,288 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.00, for a total value of $3,483,664.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,634,616. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 43,615 shares of company stock valued at $21,417,310 in the last quarter. 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.