Flputnam Investment Management Co. Invests $19.93 Million in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Flputnam Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 40,116 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,927,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Community Financial Services Group LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 103.7% in the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 55 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% in the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on VRTX. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $436.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $500.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $563.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX stock opened at $505.75 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $374.17 and a twelve month high of $546.17. The company has a market cap of $128.36 billion, a PE ratio of 29.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.30. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $483.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $463.67.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.74 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.23 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.00% and a return on equity of 23.09%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.52 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.86 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total value of $799,779.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,709,519. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total transaction of $787,485.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,793,071.79. This represents a 3.20% decrease in their position. 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 10,464 shares of company stock worth $4,959,397 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.