Welch & Forbes LLC Has $98.92 Million Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Welch & Forbes LLC lessened its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 218,198 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 2,148 shares during the period. Vertex Pharmaceuticals makes up 1.2% of Welch & Forbes LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Welch & Forbes LLC owned about 0.09% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $98,922,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $64,417,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.8% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 544,978 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $213,435,000 after buying an additional 20,053 shares in the last quarter. Leuthold Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $5,030,000. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $956,000. Finally, ING Groep NV acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $4,695,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total transaction of $134,746.14. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,086,446.52. This represents a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 6,988 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total transaction of $3,144,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 26,088 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,739,600. The trade was a 21.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 11,717 shares of company stock valued at $5,309,945 over the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VRTX. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $541.00 to $543.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $577.00 to $572.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $495.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $555.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX opened at $447.54 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $507.92. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $439.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $451.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.06 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.99 EPS for the current year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.