Coldstream Capital Management Inc. Increases Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,896 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,972,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $11,406,667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,993 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,258,288 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $9,366,113,000 after buying an additional 98,654 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,428,951 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $4,199,713,000 after buying an additional 1,426,746 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,916,084 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,382,407,000 after buying an additional 1,117,214 shares during the period. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.0% during the fourth quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,772,789 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,519,302,000 after acquiring an additional 704,575 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total value of $142,547.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 64,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,438,776.43. The trade was a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.3 %

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $493.84 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $489.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $466.28. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market cap of $126.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -224.47, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results 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%. Equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRTX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $514.91.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.