Janus Henderson Group PLC Raises Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,221,953 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 102,846 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned approximately 0.88% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $1,007,381,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% in the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Swiss RE Ltd. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% in the 4th quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.3%

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $458.99 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $438.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $453.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $362.50 and a 12-month high of $507.92. The stock has a market cap of $116.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.06 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total transaction of $469,222.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 20,729 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,810,239.58. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total value of $134,746.14. Following the sale, the director owned 4,924 shares in the company, valued at $2,086,446.52. This trade represents a 6.07% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,195 shares of company stock worth $6,801,006. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on VRTX shares. Maxim Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $580.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $571.00 to $598.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. 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, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $555.91.

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.