Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Sold by New York Life Investment Management LLC

New York Life Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 3.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,432 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,468 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $14,660,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,593,974,000. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 214.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted 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 valued at $10,673,126,000 after purchasing an additional 482,616 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $455.00 to $546.00 in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Scotiabank initiated coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $495.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Evercore upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $522.68.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total transaction of $2,137,455.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,293 shares in the company, valued at $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,725 shares in the company, valued at $17,202,600. This trade represents a 27.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 165,105 shares of company stock valued at $73,858,523 over the last 90 days. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.5%

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $470.87 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $119.47 billion, a PE ratio of 33.21 and a beta of 0.30. The business’s 50 day moving average is $458.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $427.09. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $362.50 and a 52 week high of $519.68.

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.