Parnassus Investments LLC Has $859.45 Million Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Parnassus Investments LLC reduced its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.4%, now owning approximately 1.77 million shares valued at $859.45 million, making it the firm's 16th largest holding.
• Institutional investors hold 90.96% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals' stock, with numerous entities, such as B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG, significantly increasing their positions in the 1st quarter.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals reported quarterly earnings of $4.52 EPS, surpassing estimates, and revenue of $2.94 billion, marking an 11.3% increase year-over-year.

Parnassus Investments LLC lowered its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 2.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,772,718 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 43,232 shares during the period. Vertex Pharmaceuticals comprises about 2.1% of Parnassus Investments LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Parnassus Investments LLC owned 0.69% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $859,449,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at $144,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 171.0% in the 1st quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 3,477 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,686,000 after purchasing an additional 2,194 shares during the last quarter. Oak Associates Ltd. OH lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Oak Associates Ltd. OH now owns 4,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,313,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 4,342 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,105,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 289.2% in the 1st quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 314,343 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $152,400,000 after purchasing an additional 233,584 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. UBS Group set a $553.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $494.00 to $455.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $497.10.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Bruce I. Sachs acquired 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $17,535,600. This trade represents a 12.50% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $392.05 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $434.34 and its 200-day moving average is $459.10. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $362.50 and a 52-week high of $519.88. The company has a market cap of $100.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.02 and a beta of 0.44.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($12.83) EPS. The business's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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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