Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by American Century Companies Inc.

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. reduced its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.6%, owning approximately 465,741 shares valued at about $225.8 million according to its latest SEC filing.
• Multiple hedge funds, including Clal Insurance Enterprises, significantly increased their stakes in Vertex, with Clal lifting its position by 450%.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals reported a quarterly EPS of $4.52, exceeding estimates, and posted a revenue of $2.94 billion, which is an 11.3% increase year-over-year.

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 1.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 465,741 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 7,619 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 0.18% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $225,801,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 450.0% during the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 55 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 46.2% during the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 95 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Bruce I. Sachs acquired 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $389.68 per share, for a total transaction of $1,948,400.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 45,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,535,600. This trade represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $392.79 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $444.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $463.78. The stock has a market cap of $100.71 billion, a PE ratio of 28.08 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.

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 return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 31.86%. The business had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($12.83) earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $460.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Truist Financial set a $490.00 target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Stifel Nicolaus cut 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. Finally, Leerink Partnrs downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $497.10.

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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