Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Acquired by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.2%, owning 510,542 shares valued at approximately $247.5 million following additional purchases during the quarter.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals reported earnings per share (EPS) of $4.52 for the latest quarter, surpassing estimates of $4.24 and marking an 11.3% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• In recent analyst ratings, Vertex Pharmaceuticals holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target of $497.10, indicating positive sentiment from equity research analysts.

Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 8.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 510,542 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 38,636 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.20% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $247,521,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Quent Capital LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 513 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $249,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.4% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Finally, Strategic Blueprint LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on VRTX. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Truist Financial set a $490.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $515.00 to $517.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Thirteen equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $497.10.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $392.79 on Friday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $444.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $463.94. The company has a market capitalization of $100.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.08 and a beta of 0.44. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $362.50 and a 1 year high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 23.91%. The business's revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($12.83) EPS. Equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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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