Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. Has $922,000 Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 69.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,355 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 5,377 shares during the period. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $922,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% in the third quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on VRTX shares. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $475.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $455.00 to $445.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $564.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Scotiabank initiated 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $503.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chairman directly owned 24,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,792,479.20. This represents a 72.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.00, for a total value of $6,384,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,202,600. The trade was a 27.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 160,605 shares of company stock worth $71,721,068 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $469.68 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $442.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $427.19. The firm has a market cap of $119.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.12 and a beta of 0.31. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $362.50 and a 1 year high of $519.68.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.38 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.