BNP Paribas Trims Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

BNP Paribas decreased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,653 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 282 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas’ holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,629,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,550,386 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,581,373,000 after purchasing an additional 851,054 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,905,705 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,351,385,000 after buying an additional 159,693 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,422,677 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,135,556,000 after buying an additional 29,104 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,626,347 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $756,381,000 after buying an additional 20,361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edgewood Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7,876.3% in the third quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 1,546,370 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $719,186,000 after acquiring an additional 1,526,983 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at $4,987,006. This represents a 27.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,217,500. This trade represents a 12.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,445 shares of company stock worth $2,218,394. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VRTX. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $486.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $541.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $504.38.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $467.07 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $120.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -234.71 and a beta of 0.39. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $346.29 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $473.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $474.35.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.67 EPS. Analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

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.