Morse Asset Management Inc Decreases Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Morse Asset Management Inc decreased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,115 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 80 shares during the period. Vertex Pharmaceuticals comprises approximately 1.1% of Morse Asset Management Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Morse Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,741,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Annapolis Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $31,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VRTX. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $550.00 target price (up previously from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, August 5th. HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $486.36.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 2.7 %

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $464.92 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $119.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.17 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a current ratio of 2.52. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $341.85 and a 1 year high of $510.64. The business has a fifty day moving average of $482.66 and a 200-day moving average of $452.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($12.54) by ($0.29). The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.66 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.74% and a negative return on equity of 2.45%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.53 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total transaction of $1,075,521.60. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 30,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,198,300.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 15,202 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $497.00, for a total transaction of $7,555,394.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 106,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,767,484. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total transaction of $1,075,521.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 30,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,198,300.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,047 shares of company stock valued at $16,843,806 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.