Advisors Capital Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Advisors Capital Management LLC has significantly reduced its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 91.1%, leaving it with only 1,271 shares valued at approximately $616,000.
• Notable insider activity includes Director Bruce I. Sachs purchasing 5,000 shares, increasing his ownership by 12.5% with a total value of about $17.5 million.
• The pharmaceutical company reported strong quarterly earnings, with earnings per share of $4.52, surpassing analyst expectations, and a revenue increase of 11.3% year-over-year.

Advisors Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 91.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,271 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 12,975 shares during the period. Advisors Capital Management LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $616,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at $2,933,000. Aries Wealth Management acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at $293,000. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 45.0% during the first quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,421 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,994 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 25.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,002 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,425,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005 shares during the period. Finally, Stanley Laman Group Ltd. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at $486,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Bruce I. Sachs purchased 5,000 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $389.68 per share, for a total transaction of $1,948,400.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 45,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,535,600. This trade represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $394.53 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $422.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $453.56. The company has a market cap of $101.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.20 and a beta of 0.44. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $362.50 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.28. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 23.91%. The business had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($12.83) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $494.00 to $455.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $515.00 to $517.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $530.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $496.05.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.

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