Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Has $146.29 Million Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 0.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 363,278 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $146,292,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 530 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.34, for a total transaction of $251,930.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,825,928.26. This trade represents a 0.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 in the last 90 days. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $512.52 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $131.61 billion, a P/E ratio of -232.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $464.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $462.31.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share 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%. Equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $480.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $506.70.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.