Second Line Capital LLC Purchases Shares of 1,115 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Second Line Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,115 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $437,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% in the third quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% during the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.9% in the third quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 86 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 345.0% during the 3rd quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 89 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 4,910 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.65, for a total transaction of $2,394,361.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 17,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,562,646.35. This trade represents a 21.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total value of $2,137,455.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 93,485 shares of company stock valued at $43,967,586. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $462.49 on Wednesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $516.50. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $470.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $439.49. The company has a market capitalization of $117.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.17, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.31.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.05 by ($0.02). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 24.30% and a net margin of 32.94%.The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.98 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on VRTX. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $571.00 to $598.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $466.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $577.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Twenty-three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $553.36.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.