Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC invested approximately $721,000 in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by acquiring 1,619 shares during the second quarter.
• Institutional investors hold 90.96% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals' stock, highlighting strong interest and investment in the company.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals recently reported earnings per share of $4.52, surpassing analysts' expectations, and has provided a forecast of 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 1,619 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $721,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,491,161 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $11,388,985,000 after purchasing an additional 232,873 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position 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 worth $2,454,373,000 after purchasing an additional 744,680 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,953,512 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,916,742,000 after purchasing an additional 33,492 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position 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 worth $1,414,331,000 after purchasing an additional 1,226,527 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 2,559,476 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,240,885,000 after purchasing an additional 230,257 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI decreased their target price 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. HC Wainwright decreased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $478.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $458.00 to $456.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $493.81.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.5%

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $395.31 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $101.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.26 and a beta of 0.44. The company's 50-day moving average is $404.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $445.10. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $362.50 and a 12-month high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 23.91%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($12.83) EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs bought 5,000 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $389.68 per share, for a total transaction of $1,948,400.00. Following the acquisition, the director 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company 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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