Parkside Financial Bank & Trust Grows Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 25.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 807 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 162 shares during the quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $328,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.0% during the fourth quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $25,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of VRTX stock traded down $4.18 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $400.73. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 263,930 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,233,274. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $413.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $398.36. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $316.43 and a 12-month high of $448.40. The company has a quick ratio of 3.78, a current ratio of 3.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $103.57 billion, a PE ratio of 29.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.35.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.85 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.33 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total value of $150,697.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,755,762.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total transaction of $150,697.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,755,762.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 3,222 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,354,013.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,250,727.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on VRTX. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $457.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $440.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $429.45.

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.