Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Has $426,000 Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,048 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 68 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $426,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. abrdn plc increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 196.0% in the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 581,018 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $236,410,000 after purchasing an additional 384,730 shares in the last quarter. BSN CAPITAL PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $81,378,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,944,913 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,605,146,000 after acquiring an additional 147,248 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.9% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,813,563 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $978,388,000 after purchasing an additional 131,539 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21,750.1% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 115,150 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $46,853,000 after purchasing an additional 114,623 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $418.82 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 3.99 and a quick ratio of 3.78. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $320.01 and a one year high of $448.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $108.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.39. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $408.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $400.75.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.66 by $1.10. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.67 EPS. Analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on VRTX shares. Evercore ISI upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $438.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Guggenheim upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $440.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $508.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $432.18.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,819,732.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total value of $150,697.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,755,762.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares in the company, valued at $31,819,732.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.