Northern Trust Corp Sells 101,657 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp reduced its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.7%, selling 101,657 shares, and now holds a total of 2,619,392 shares valued at approximately $1.27 billion.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals has received mixed ratings from analysts, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $497.10, alongside various ratings adjustments from firms like Wells Fargo and Leerink Partners.
• The company reported better-than-expected earnings of $4.52 per share for its last quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $4.24, along with a revenue of $2.94 billion, which was above analyst expectations.

Northern Trust Corp lessened its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 3.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,619,392 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 101,657 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned 1.02% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $1,269,934,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of 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. Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 3,041 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,225,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 12,651 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $5,095,000 after acquiring an additional 1,294 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $137,930,000. Finally, Commerce Bank increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 8,638 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,479,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Leerink Partners restated a "market perform" rating and set a $503.00 price objective (down previously from $550.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $460.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Leerink Partnrs lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $530.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $497.10.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $392.79 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $519.88. The firm has a market cap of $100.71 billion, a PE ratio of 28.08 and a beta of 0.44. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $444.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $464.12.

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 (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 quarter last year, the business posted ($12.83) EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Bruce I. Sachs acquired 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost 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 $17,535,600. This represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

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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