Toronto Dominion Bank Has $43.42 Million Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Toronto Dominion Bank trimmed its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 19.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 107,834 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 26,368 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $43,424,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,374,948,000. Parnassus Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $731,283,000. Capital World Investors raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $11,406,667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,993 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,428,951 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,199,713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,426,746 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edgewood Management LLC raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 91.2% during the fourth quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 2,956,608 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,190,626,000 after purchasing an additional 1,410,238 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $438.65 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $112.64 billion, a PE ratio of -199.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $482.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $464.44.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.29 by ($0.23). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.85 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.76 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This trade represents a 0.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,005 shares of company stock valued at $1,978,465 in the last quarter. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on VRTX shares. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $535.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $442.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $515.04.

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.