Banco Santander S.A. Acquires 32,316 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Banco Santander S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 203.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 48,184 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 32,316 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $19,404,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Edgewood Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7,876.3% during the third quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 1,546,370 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $719,186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,983 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $435,899,000. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.1% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,550,386 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,581,373,000 after purchasing an additional 851,054 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,798,870 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,231,858,000 after purchasing an additional 704,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 169.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 839,672 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $338,136,000 after purchasing an additional 528,029 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $506.70.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $488.29 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.39 billion, a P/E ratio of -221.95, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $448.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $461.50. 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 (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total transaction of $111,034.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This trade represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,084 shares of company stock worth $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.