Aberdeen Group plc Sells 42,856 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc reduced its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 12.3%, selling 42,856 shares during the first quarter, resulting in ownership of approximately $146.8 million worth of shares.
• Insider transactions included Director Bruce I. Sachs acquiring 5,000 shares at $389.68 each, increasing his holdings by 12.5% to a total of 45,000 shares.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals' stock received differing ratings from analysts, with a price target ranging from $411 to $553 and an average rating of "Moderate Buy."

Aberdeen Group plc decreased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 12.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 304,714 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 42,856 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned about 0.12% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $146,828,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quent Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 513 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 543 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $263,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,556 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,225 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Blueprint LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 1,498 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $726,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs acquired 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $389.68 per share, for a total transaction of $1,948,400.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 45,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,535,600. The trade was a 12.50% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets set a $530.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group set a $553.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $424.00 to $411.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $442.00 to $438.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $497.10.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $390.30 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $100.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.90 and a beta of 0.44. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $519.88. The business's fifty day moving average is $446.11 and its 200-day moving average is $464.11.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.28. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 31.86%. The business had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($12.83) EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect 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.

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