Swiss National Bank Has $332.49 Million Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Swiss National Bank increased its Vertex Pharmaceuticals stake by 6% in the first quarter, ending with 744,600 shares worth about $332.5 million.
• Vertex reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $4.47 per share, while revenue came in at $2.99 billion, matching analyst estimates and rising 8.3% year over year.
• Analysts remain mostly bullish on VRTX: the stock has 22 Buy ratings versus 3 Holds, with a consensus price target of $559.61.

Swiss National Bank grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 744,600 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 42,000 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.29% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $332,494,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,783,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth approximately $228,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,929 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $5,311,000 after acquiring an additional 986 shares during the period. ICW Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% in the second quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 604 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.3% during the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,291 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,518 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.1%

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $485.65 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $533.67. The company has a 50 day moving average of $462.54 and a 200-day moving average of $459.00. The company has a market cap of $123.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.80, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.29.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The business had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.06 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total value of $469,222.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,729 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,810,239.58. This trade represents a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total value of $134,746.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,924 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,086,446.52. This trade represents a 6.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 18,874 shares of company stock worth $8,707,966. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on VRTX shares. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $577.00 to $572.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Wall Street Zen cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 28th. Barclays lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $542.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $559.61.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex's marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.

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