Anderson Hoagland & Co. Sells 87 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Anderson Hoagland & Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,175 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 87 shares during the quarter. Anderson Hoagland & Co.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $8,936,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,441 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,996,000 after buying an additional 644 shares in the last quarter. Pflug Koory LLC boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 2,018 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $813,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,915 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $771,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,783,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Montecito Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Montecito Bank & Trust now owns 1,659 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $668,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $439.62 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $435.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $464.66. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.9 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America reduced their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Oppenheimer downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $361.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $509.00 to $418.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $494.84.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.