O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Grows Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 29,154 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 472 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $11,740,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VRTX. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $407.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $508.65.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $484.82 on Tuesday. 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 $124.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -220.37, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $477.71 and a two-hundred day moving average of $463.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.69.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. On average, analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal 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.