Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Raises Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 9.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 349,477 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 29,333 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $140,734,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $900,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Spinnaker Trust increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Spinnaker Trust now owns 1,235 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $497,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,807,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 641 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $291,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $488.29 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -221.95, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $448.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $461.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $407.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $506.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 530 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.34, for a total transaction of $251,930.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 58,539 shares in the company, valued at $27,825,928.26. This represents a 0.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,084 shares of company stock valued at $505,512. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.