Optas LLC Buys 64 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Optas LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 7.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 874 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Optas LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,267 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $510,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 873 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $203,000. Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 5,494 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,212,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 8,074 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,251,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $482.28 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $434.73 and a 200 day moving average of $462.62. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The company has a market capitalization of $124.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -242.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.67 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $361.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $430.00 to $433.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $566.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $502.58.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.