California Public Employees Retirement System Trims Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

California Public Employees Retirement System decreased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 9.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 880,214 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 87,637 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $354,462,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dunhill Financial LLC grew 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 valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.0 %

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $492.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.69. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $476.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $463.71. 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 $126.52 billion, a PE ratio of -223.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted 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 net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. Research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $407.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $435.00 to $467.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $506.70.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the business’s 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 owns 67,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 quarter, insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.