Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Acquired by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors increased its Vertex Pharmaceuticals stake by 16.7% in the first quarter, acquiring 12,721 additional shares for a total position valued at approximately $39.7 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.96% of Vertex’s outstanding stock.
• Vertex reported second-quarter revenue of about $3.33 billion, up 12.5% year over year and above expectations, while adjusted EPS of $4.73 narrowly missed consensus. The company raised its 2026 revenue outlook to $13.1 billion-$13.2 billion, citing continued strength in cystic fibrosis treatments.
• The company agreed to acquire Crinetics Pharmaceuticals for approximately $10 billion in equity value, adding the PALSONIFY treatment and expanding into rare endocrine diseases. Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $559.61, though the deal may create execution risks.

Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 16.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 88,863 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 12,721 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $39,681,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% during the 4th quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Here are the key news stories impacting Vertex Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter revenue rose 12.5% year over year to approximately $3.33 billion, exceeding Wall Street expectations. Growth was supported by continued demand for Vertex’s cystic fibrosis medicines, as well as contributions from sickle-cell disease, beta thalassemia and acute-pain treatments. Vertex Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Vertex raised its full-year 2026 revenue outlook to $13.1 billion-$13.2 billion, above the roughly $13.0 billion analyst consensus. The higher forecast reflects sustained strength in cystic fibrosis drug sales. Vertex raises annual revenue forecast
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability remained strong, with a 35.5% net margin and operating cash flow of approximately $1.4 billion. Vertex also highlighted strong growth from CASGEVY, its gene-edited therapy developed with CRISPR Therapeutics, and its expanding non-cystic-fibrosis pipeline.
• Neutral Sentiment: Vertex announced an agreement to acquire Crinetics Pharmaceuticals for approximately $10.0 billion in equity value, or about $8.8 billion net of estimated cash. The transaction would add PALSONIFY (paltusotine) and establish rare endocrine diseases as another major business area, but its scale may increase near-term execution and valuation risk. Crinetics acquisition announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted EPS was $4.73, narrowly below the $4.74 consensus; another data provider cited a $4.79 estimate. The modest miss likely drove the negative reaction despite revenue outperforming expectations and EPS increasing from $4.52 a year earlier. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Q2 Earnings Lag Estimates

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRTX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 28th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $542.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $559.61.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $470.72 on Tuesday. The company's fifty day moving average is $471.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $460.44. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $533.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $119.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.74 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.23 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.52 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 6,988 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total transaction of $3,144,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 26,088 shares in the company, valued at $11,739,600. The trade was a 21.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total value of $787,485.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,321 shares in the company, valued at $23,793,071.79. This represents a 3.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 17,452 shares of company stock valued at $8,103,997. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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