Norden Group LLC Buys 13,343 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Norden Group LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2,169.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,958 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,343 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $5,835,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on VRTX. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $545.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Guggenheim upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $448.61.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX opened at $470.28 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $449.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $427.99. The company has a current ratio of 3.50, a quick ratio of 3.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $335.82 and a 12 month high of $486.42. The company has a market cap of $121.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.39.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.66 by $1.10. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.08% and a net margin of 39.46%. The company’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.67 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total transaction of $1,075,521.60. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 30,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,198,300.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $457.00, for a total value of $715,205.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 121,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,467,918. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total value of $1,075,521.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 30,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,198,300.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 28,366 shares of company stock valued at $13,058,787 in the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.