Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Sells 2,121 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC reduced its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.5%, selling 2,121 shares and holding 440,927 shares valued at approximately $196.3 million.
• In the recent quarter, institutional investors such as Price T Rowe Associates and Goldman Sachs Group increased their holdings significantly in Vertex Pharmaceuticals, indicating strong interest in the company.
• Analysts have varying ratings on Vertex Pharmaceuticals, with an average price target of $494.38 and one research analyst recommending a "Strong Buy" rating.

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC lowered its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 440,927 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 2,121 shares during the period. Vertex Pharmaceuticals comprises approximately 0.6% of Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC's holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC owned 0.17% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $196,301,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in VRTX. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 72.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,917,227 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,414,331,000 after purchasing an additional 1,226,527 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter valued at about $484,053,000. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,062,442 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,454,373,000 after purchasing an additional 744,680 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 28.9% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,775,194 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $860,650,000 after acquiring an additional 398,460 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 456.9% in the 1st quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 431,804 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $209,347,000 after acquiring an additional 354,269 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $517.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Scotiabank lowered 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 report on Tuesday, August 5th. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $475.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $558.00 to $546.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $494.38.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.2%

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $408.61 on Friday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $394.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $437.23. 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 $104.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.21 and a beta of 0.43.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($12.83) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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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