Newman Dignan & Sheerar Inc. Sells 36 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Newman Dignan & Sheerar Inc. lowered its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 730 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 36 shares during the period. Newman Dignan & Sheerar Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $294,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Spinnaker Trust raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Spinnaker Trust now owns 1,235 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $497,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $206,000. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,510,000. Banque Pictet & Cie SA raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA now owns 12,043 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,850,000 after acquiring an additional 788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 4,186 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,686,000 after acquiring an additional 489 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total transaction of $142,547.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,438,776.43. This trade represents a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.8 %

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $459.00 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The business’s fifty day moving average is $435.69 and its 200 day moving average is $461.52.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. Equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on VRTX shares. StockNews.com downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $402.00 to $407.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $505.57.

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.