Congress Asset Management Co. Has $87.71 Million Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 188,580 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,919 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $87,705,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Capital World Investors grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 25,567,184 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,687,339,000 after acquiring an additional 3,761,414 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,676,518 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $9,479,011,000 after purchasing an additional 394,338 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 61.0% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,743,882 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,401,000,000 after buying an additional 2,176,218 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.2% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,782,374 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,999,080,000 after buying an additional 837,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.4% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,584,315 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,080,296,000 after purchasing an additional 244,336 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded down $1.85 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $473.23. 130,865 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,160,115. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $474.81 and a 200 day moving average of $463.87. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $341.90 and a 1 year high of $510.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a current ratio of 2.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -234.03 and a beta of 0.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.45% and a negative net margin of 4.74%. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.53 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,217,500. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,217,500. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total value of $1,888,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,987,006. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 6,710 shares of company stock worth $3,298,206. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $462.00 to $474.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $505.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $477.00 to $562.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $550.00 target price (up previously from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, August 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $492.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.