Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Stock Holdings Lifted by Alps Advisors Inc.

Alps Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 93.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,399 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,160 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $940,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VRTX. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 39,035 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $17,378,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% in the second quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 38,147 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $16,983,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Advisory Resource Group bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $1,286,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 41.8% in the third quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR now owns 23,569 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $9,231,000 after acquiring an additional 6,942 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Welch & Forbes LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.4% in the third quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 220,346 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $86,296,000 after buying an additional 3,102 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chairman directly owned 24,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,792,479.20. The trade was a 72.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,088,752.07. This represents a 9.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 145,417 shares of company stock valued at $65,190,487 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $461.24 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $459.11 and its 200 day moving average is $427.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.53 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $519.68.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Evercore boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $414.00 to $606.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $522.68.

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.