Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. Makes New $1.11 Million Investment in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,830 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,108,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,973,777 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $10,673,126,000 after purchasing an additional 482,616 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.5% during the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 6,151,505 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,738,650,000 after buying an additional 1,089,063 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,928,747 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,627,135,000 after buying an additional 166,987 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.7% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,378,320 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,949,228,000 after buying an additional 424,808 shares during the period. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,813,378 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,697,716,000 after acquiring an additional 65,047 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total value of $2,137,455.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 9,532 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $461.00, for a total value of $4,394,252.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 37,725 shares in the company, valued at $17,391,225. The trade was a 20.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 165,105 shares of company stock worth $73,858,523. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $441.36 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $519.68. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $446.59 and a 200 day moving average of $427.29. The company has a market capitalization of $111.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.13 and a beta of 0.31.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.58 by $0.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.35% and a return on equity of 23.51%. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.38 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VRTX. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Wolfe Research raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $548.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Leerink Partners increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Scotiabank began coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $495.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $503.80.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.