Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Holdings Raised by Banco Santander S.A.

Banco Santander S.A. boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 13.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 79,406 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 9,218 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $31,099,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% in the third quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% during the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Key Vertex Pharmaceuticals News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Profile of CEO Reshma Kewalramani in TIME highlights strong leadership and continued R&D momentum, which can support investor confidence in Vertex’s long-term pipeline and strategy. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary noting Vertex’s relative performance vs. the Dow suggests the stock still has investor interest and can attract momentum buyers after pullbacks. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: General coverage in Nasdaq-100 roundup pieces points to continued attention from index investors and analysts — useful for liquidity and index-fund flows but not an immediate catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent Q4 results (Feb 12) showed revenue growth (~9.5% y/y) but a tiny EPS miss ($5.03 vs. $5.05 consensus). Fundamentals remain strong, but the small miss tempers near-term upside until forward guidance or pipeline news arrives. (Earnings release/public filings)
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple insider sales by several senior execs on Feb 25 — including large disposals such as EVP Duncan McKechnie (4,910 shares; ~21.9% reduction) and several other EVPs/CAO — collectively amount to roughly $4.6M in disclosed sales. Clustered insider selling can trigger short-term selling pressure and signals profit-taking or personal liquidity needs rather than company weakness, but markets often interpret heavy insider sales as a negative near-term indicator. SEC Filing (example)

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $480.13 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $465.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $431.13. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $519.68. The stock has a market cap of $121.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.32 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.18 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 32.94% and a return on equity of 24.30%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.98 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 58,613 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.83, for a total value of $27,479,532.79. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,934 shares in the company, valued at $27,630,027.22. This represents a 49.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total transaction of $2,137,455.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,293 shares in the company, valued at $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 168,937 shares of company stock worth $77,879,922. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of several research reports. Leerink Partners raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $606.00 to $607.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $546.00 to $541.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. HC Wainwright set a $591.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $577.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $542.00.

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.