Xponance Inc. Has $23.87 Million Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Xponance Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 58,653 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 562 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $23,865,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VRTX. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at about $707,950,000. Macquarie Group Ltd. raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 232.3% in the second quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 933,179 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $262,961,000 after purchasing an additional 652,321 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 33.1% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,578,444 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $744,603,000 after purchasing an additional 640,899 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 144.6% in the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 576,398 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $166,452,000 after purchasing an additional 340,716 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BSN CAPITAL PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $81,378,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTX has been the subject of several recent research reports. HC Wainwright increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $457.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $325.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $515.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Maxim Group cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $429.45.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded up $0.38 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $393.48. 942,996 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,241,552. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $414.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $396.76. The company has a market capitalization of $101.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.35. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $316.43 and a 12 month high of $448.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 3.99 and a quick ratio of 3.78.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.85 by $0.35. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. The company had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total transaction of $150,697.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at $23,755,762.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 2,656 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $419.51, for a total transaction of $1,114,218.56. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 27,644 shares in the company, valued at $11,596,934.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total transaction of $150,697.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at $23,755,762.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.