Huntington National Bank Acquires 3,552 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 12.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,999 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 3,552 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $14,960,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% in the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Archer Investment Corp raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 74 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTX has been the topic of several research reports. Maxim Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $466.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, HC Wainwright upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $591.00 to $641.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $555.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.5%

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $447.97 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $113.69 billion, a PE ratio of 26.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.30. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $439.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $451.67. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $507.92.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.06 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total transaction of $469,222.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,810,239.58. This trade represents a 5.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total transaction of $134,746.14. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,086,446.52. This trade represents a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 11,717 shares of company stock valued at $5,309,945 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.