Geode Capital Management LLC Trims Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Geode Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 5,648,236 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 287,652 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,269,073,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $1,374,948,000. Parnassus Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $731,283,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,916,084 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,382,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117,214 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $435,899,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.0% in the 4th quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,772,789 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,519,302,000 after purchasing an additional 704,575 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total transaction of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on VRTX. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $508.65.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of VRTX opened at $484.82 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $477.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $463.68. The company has a market capitalization of $124.50 billion, a PE ratio of -220.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

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.