Clearstead Trust LLC Sells 30 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Clearstead Trust LLC cut its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 30.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 30 shares during the period. Clearstead Trust LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $27,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $1,172,000. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 90.0% during the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 236,397 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $97,138,000 after buying an additional 112,007 shares during the last quarter. AJOVista LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $147,000. Baxter Bros Inc. grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Baxter Bros Inc. now owns 896 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $365,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Provence Wealth Management Group bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $220,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on VRTX. Evercore ISI raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $438.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $371.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, April 12th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $332.00 to $379.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $430.86.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $0.92 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $401.08. The company had a trading volume of 1,064,066 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,004,237. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $409.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $400.14. The company has a market cap of $103.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 3.99, a quick ratio of 3.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $320.01 and a fifty-two week high of $448.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 21.91% and a net margin of 36.68%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.33 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total value of $150,697.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,755,762.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 2,656 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $419.51, for a total value of $1,114,218.56. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 27,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,596,934.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 owns 55,804 shares of the company’s stock, 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 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.