Capital International Inc. CA Lowers Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Capital International Inc. CA decreased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 16.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 159,660 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 31,681 shares during the period. Capital International Inc. CA’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $72,383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 650 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 545 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $247,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 730 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 5,026 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,279,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glenview Trust Co raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Glenview Trust Co now owns 7,005 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,176,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total transaction of $469,222.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,729 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,810,239.58. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total value of $134,746.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,086,446.52. This trade represents a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,717 shares of company stock worth $5,309,945. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Maxim Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $580.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $466.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $555.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX opened at $446.83 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $437.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $451.81. The company has a market cap of $113.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.50, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $507.92.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.06 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.