Strs Ohio Takes $37.74 Million Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Strs Ohio has invested approximately $37.74 million in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by purchasing 77,851 shares during the first quarter, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• Several analysts have recently revised their price targets for Vertex Pharmaceuticals, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $496.05.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $4.52, exceeding analyst estimates, and achieved a year-over-year revenue growth of 11.3%.

Strs Ohio purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 77,851 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $37,744,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quent Capital LLC grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.5% in the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 513 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.4% in the first quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 543 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $263,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the period. Sculati Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,556 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the first quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,225 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Blueprint LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% in the first quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 1,498 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $726,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $494.00 to $455.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $558.00 to $546.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $424.00 to $411.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $430.00 to $405.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $460.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $496.05.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.7%

NASDAQ:VRTX traded down $2.84 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $394.53. 978,279 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,365,373. The company has a market capitalization of $101.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.20 and a beta of 0.44. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $519.88. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $422.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $453.38.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.28. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 31.86%.The company had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($12.83) earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs bought 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $389.68 per share, with a total value of $1,948,400.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 45,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,535,600. The trade was a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.