Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by First American Trust FSB

First American Trust FSB lowered its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 24.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,300 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 5,689 shares during the quarter. First American Trust FSB's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $7,039,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.0% in the fourth quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 75,718 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,819,732.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,819,732.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 3,222 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,354,013.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,250,727.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $457.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $397.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $500.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $508.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $424.62.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $0.81 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $397.36. The stock had a trading volume of 1,373,651 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,261,933. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $316.43 and a twelve month high of $448.40. The stock has a market cap of $102.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.55, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.35. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $416.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $396.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 3.78 and a current ratio of 3.99.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.85 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.33 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 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.

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