Ascent Group LLC Sells 1,345 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC reduced its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 12.5%, selling 1,345 shares and retaining 9,442 shares valued at approximately $4.58 million.
• Recent analyst reports predict a mixed outlook, with target prices for Vertex Pharmaceuticals ranging from $405 to $546, reflecting differing ratings from "sector perform" to "buy".
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals recently reported strong quarterly earnings, with a net revenue increase of 11.3% year-over-year, outperforming consensus expectations with $4.52 earnings per share.

Ascent Group LLC lowered its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 12.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 9,442 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 1,345 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,578,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,783,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 140,734 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $56,826,000 after acquiring an additional 17,809 shares in the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $229,000. Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 30,111 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $12,126,000 after acquiring an additional 2,978 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Humankind Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Humankind Investments LLC now owns 2,067 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $832,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $430.00 to $405.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim dropped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $558.00 to $546.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $460.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. HC Wainwright lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $478.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $497.10.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.2%

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $396.12 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $362.50 and a 12-month high of $519.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.31 and a beta of 0.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $428.49 and a 200 day moving average of $456.22.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Bruce I. Sachs purchased 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $389.68 per share, for a total transaction of $1,948,400.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 45,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,535,600. This represents a 12.50% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 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.

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