Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Acquired by Founders Financial Securities LLC

Founders Financial Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 154.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,942 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,787 shares during the period. Founders Financial Securities LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $1,152,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $449.20, for a total value of $28,650,425.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 24,026 shares in the company, valued at $10,792,479.20. The trade was a 72.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of the business’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 $17,202,600. This trade represents a 27.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 151,073 shares of company stock worth $67,326,816. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $463.50 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $117.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.69 and a beta of 0.32. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $433.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $426.17. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $362.50 and a 12-month high of $519.68.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 31.35%.Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.38 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $564.00 price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $517.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $498.42.

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.