Meeder Advisory Services Inc. Decreases Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. trimmed its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,607 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 27 shares during the quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,258,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dunhill Financial LLC grew 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 worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on VRTX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $509.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 530 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.34, for a total transaction of $251,930.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,825,928.26. The trade was a 0.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.3 %

VRTX stock opened at $483.49 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $479.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $463.81. The company has a market capitalization of $124.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -219.77, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. Research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.