Geode Capital Management LLC Sells 389,420 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Geode Capital Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,935,888 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 389,420 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,752,100,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Groesbeck Investment Management Corp NJ raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Groesbeck Investment Management Corp NJ now owns 1,794 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $841,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% in the third quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 3,710 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,751,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. now owns 3,586 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,681,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,101 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 804 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $374,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $541.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $503.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $506.20.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $473.98 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a 50-day moving average of $473.01 and a 200 day moving average of $475.84. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $351.44 and a 12-month high of $519.88. The stock has a market cap of $122.06 billion, a PE ratio of -238.18 and a beta of 0.36.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.67 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.