Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. Trims Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Key Points

• Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. reduced its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.6% during the first quarter, owning 6,672 shares valued at approximately $3.23 million after selling 707 shares.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals reported a Q1 EPS of $4.06, missing analyst estimates of $4.29, with revenue of $2.77 billion compared to expectations of $2.85 billion.
• Overall, institutional investors own 90.96% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock, highlighting significant investment interest in the company.

Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. cut its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 9.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,672 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 707 shares during the quarter. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $3,234,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quent Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.5% in the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 513 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $249,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Sculati Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Blueprint LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 25 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $442.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Leerink Partners reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $503.00 price target (down previously from $550.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $535.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $512.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.7%

VRTX traded up $3.49 on Wednesday, hitting $471.90. 244,380 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,513,604. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $453.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $465.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 2.65. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $121.18 billion, a PE ratio of -120.38 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.85 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 3.36% and a negative net margin of 8.91%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.76 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share 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.