25,734 Shares in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Bought by Generate Investment Management Ltd

Generate Investment Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 25,734 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,078,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VRTX. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,593,974,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.5% during the second quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 6,151,505 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,738,650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089,063 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 214.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 763,703 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $299,097,000 after purchasing an additional 520,949 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,973,777 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $10,673,126,000 after purchasing an additional 482,616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.7% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,378,320 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,949,228,000 after purchasing an additional 424,808 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $453.74 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $437.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $426.17. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $362.50 and a fifty-two week high of $519.68. The company has a market cap of $115.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.00 and a beta of 0.32.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.35% and a return on equity of 23.51%. The company had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.38 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.00, for a total transaction of $6,384,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 37,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,202,600. This represents a 27.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.20, for a total value of $28,650,425.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 24,026 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,792,479.20. The trade was a 72.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 151,073 shares of company stock worth $67,326,816 over the last quarter. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $455.00 to $445.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $423.00 to $415.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $564.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $495.00 price objective for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $502.05.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.