CCM Investment Advisers LLC Cuts Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

CCM Investment Advisers LLC lowered its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 25.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 22,202 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 7,770 shares during the period. CCM Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $8,941,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. MGO One Seven LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 98.5% in the second quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 3,221 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,598 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 14.4% in the second quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 209,839 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $98,356,000 after purchasing an additional 26,468 shares during the period. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 16.4% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 2,699 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,265,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Nicholas Investment Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 29.8% during the 2nd quarter. Nicholas Investment Partners LP now owns 5,636 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,642,000 after acquiring an additional 1,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.7% during the 2nd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 13,729 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $6,435,000 after buying an additional 1,099 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTX traded down $5.63 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $406.48. The company had a trading volume of 494,735 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,310,576. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The stock has a market cap of $104.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -204.26 and a beta of 0.40. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $450.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $468.49. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.67 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. HC Wainwright lowered their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $600.00 to $535.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $509.00 to $418.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $490.38.

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.