3,678 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Sold by Banque Pictet & Cie SA

Key Points

• Banque Pictet & Cie SA reduced its Vertex Pharmaceuticals stake by 15.7%, selling 3,678 shares and retaining 19,818 shares valued at approximately $10.36 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.96% of Vertex.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with one Strong Buy, 24 Buy, and three Hold ratings. Vertex has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $579.81.
• Vertex shares opened at $499.74, while the company’s latest quarter showed revenue rising 12.5% year over year to $3.33 billion; EPS of $4.73 narrowly missed estimates by $0.01.

Banque Pictet & Cie SA trimmed its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,818 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 3,678 shares during the period. Banque Pictet & Cie SA's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $10,361,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Bangor Savings Bank grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the second quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 4,470 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,220,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Trust Point Inc. increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 793 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $394,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC now owns 1,983 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $885,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.9% during the first quarter. Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC now owns 510 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 759 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $377,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on VRTX. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $570.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $560.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $570.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $579.81.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $499.74 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $523.54 and its 200 day moving average is $480.55. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $403.16 and a fifty-two week high of $560.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $126.83 billion, a PE ratio of 29.09, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.28.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.74 by ($0.01). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.09% and a net margin of 35.00%. The firm had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.52 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.73 EPS for the current year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated is a global biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing medicines for serious diseases. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, the company applies expertise in molecular biology, genetics and drug discovery to address conditions with significant unmet medical needs.

Vertex is best known for its portfolio of cystic fibrosis treatments, including Kalydeco, Orkambi, Symdeko/Symkevi and Trikafta/Kaftrio. These medicines target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis by addressing defects in the CFTR protein.

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