Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Acquired by Ameriprise Financial Inc.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,276,927 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 95,565 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned about 0.90% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $891,744,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,123 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $945,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the third quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 1,442 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $565,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $196,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 349 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $137,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Defined Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% in the third quarter. Defined Wealth Management LLC now owns 932 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $365,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on VRTX shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $580.00 price target for the company. Evercore upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $606.00 to $607.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Twenty-three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $553.36.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $469.34 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $470.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $438.12. The stock has a market cap of $119.23 billion, a PE ratio of 30.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.31. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $362.50 and a 52-week high of $519.68.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $3.19 billion during 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%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’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. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Headlines Impacting Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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

• Positive Sentiment: Several major analysts raised coverage and targets for VRTX, boosting bullish sentiment and shorter-term buying interest. Oppenheimer Raises Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target to $600.00
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades translated into intraday strength earlier in the week (shares traded notably higher on upgrade headlines), signaling renewed investor appetite. Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Trading 9.9% Higher on Analyst Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: New research coverage from Jefferies adds another channel for institutional visibility and could support longer-term demand. Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Research Coverage Started at Jefferies Financial Group
• Positive Sentiment: Retail and media interest has picked up — headlines highlighting a recent ~8% jump are drawing attention from momentum traders. This helps explain recent volume spikes and short-term volatility. This Stock Just Jumped By 8%: Is It Too Late to Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: “Trending stock” write-ups from Zacks/Yahoo summarize catalysts and risks for new readers; useful for context but unlikely to move price by themselves. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (VRTX) Is a Trending Stock: Facts to Know Before Betting on It
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyses that list reasons to watch VRTX (growth from cystic fibrosis and extending franchises) and one caution help frame investor decisions but don’t introduce a new catalyst. 2 Reasons to Watch VRTX and 1 to Stay Cautious
• Neutral Sentiment: Long-term performance pieces and market-focus coverage provide background on investor returns and index attention; helpful for positioning but not immediate drivers. If You Invested $1000 In Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock 20 Years Ago…
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the upgrades, the stock has retraced from the immediate highs — recent intraday declines and a prior small earnings EPS miss (Feb quarter EPS slightly below consensus) leave some investors taking profits. Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) Registers a Bigger Fall Than the Market

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 9,532 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $461.00, for a total value of $4,394,252.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,391,225. This represents a 20.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark E. Bunnage sold 2,021 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.43, for a total transaction of $930,529.03. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 12,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,945,993.02. This trade represents a 13.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 91,156 shares of company stock valued at $42,845,497 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.