Churchill Financial Advisors LLC Invests $567,000 in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Churchill Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,250 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $567,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% in the 4th quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% in the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Archer Investment Corp boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 89.7% in the 4th quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 74 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $434.52 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $507.92. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $441.55 and its 200 day moving average is $451.02. The stock has a market cap of $110.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.06 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.97 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $541.00 to $543.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $466.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $495.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $555.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total transaction of $469,222.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,810,239.58. This trade represents a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total value of $134,746.14. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,086,446.52. This represents a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,189 shares of company stock valued at $9,923,036. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.