Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Invests $203,000 in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 505 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at $35,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $482.28 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The firm has a market cap of $124.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -242.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $434.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $462.62. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.67 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VRTX. StockNews.com lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $502.58.

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.