Bank of America Corp DE Acquires Shares of 3,039,178 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 3.04 million Vertex Pharmaceuticals shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $1.51 billion and representing about 1.2% of the company.
• Vertex reported 12.5% year-over-year revenue growth to $3.33 billion, though quarterly EPS of $4.73 narrowly missed estimates. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $570.83.
• Vertex shares were trading at $519.51, up 0.8%, while institutional investors owned approximately 90.96% of the stock; insiders sold 4,657 shares worth about $2.35 million during the quarter.

Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 3,039,178 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $1,509,651,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 1.20% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Global Investments bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at $3,568,000. Calamos Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.1% in the 1st quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 77,886 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $34,779,000 after buying an additional 33,917 shares during the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda America Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,911,000. Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $13,823,000. Finally, Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.9% in the 1st quarter. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. now owns 34,991 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $15,625,000 after acquiring an additional 3,710 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.8%

VRTX opened at $519.51 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $510.81 and a 200 day moving average of $473.32. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $374.17 and a 52-week high of $560.25. The stock has a market cap of $131.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.24, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.32.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced 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). The business had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.23 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.00% and a return on equity of 23.09%. The business's revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.52 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on VRTX. Weiss Ratings raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $590.00 to $595.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $436.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $500.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $570.83.

Insider Activity

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total value of $787,485.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,793,071.79. This represents a 3.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 596 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $482.50, for a total value of $287,570.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 15,337 shares in the company, valued at $7,400,102.50. The trade was a 3.74% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,657 shares of company stock valued at $2,346,247. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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 combines research in human genetics with drug discovery and development.

Vertex is best known for its cystic fibrosis portfolio, which includes CFTR modulator therapies such as Kalydeco, Orkambi, Symdeko and the combination marketed as Trikafta in the United States and Kaftrio in other markets.

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