Diversify Wealth Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 27.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,746 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,761,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 25,567,184 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,687,339,000 after purchasing an additional 3,761,414 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,676,518 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $9,479,011,000 after purchasing an additional 394,338 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 61.0% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,743,882 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,401,000,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176,218 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.2% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,782,374 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,999,080,000 after purchasing an additional 837,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.4% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,584,315 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,080,296,000 after purchasing an additional 244,336 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,987,006. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $476.75, for a total value of $1,086,990.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 23,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,088,728.25. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total value of $1,888,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,987,006. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 6,710 shares of company stock valued at $3,298,206 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.0 %

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $475.08 on Thursday. 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 Incorporated has a 12 month low of $341.90 and a 12 month high of $510.64. The stock has a market cap of $122.62 billion, a P/E ratio of -234.03 and a beta of 0.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $474.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $463.87.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.74% and a negative return on equity of 2.45%. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.66 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.53 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on VRTX. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $505.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $431.00 to $425.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $492.50.

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.