DNB Asset Management AS Raises Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

DNB Asset Management AS grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 95,414 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 8,483 shares during the quarter. DNB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $37,368,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kovack Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.9% in the second quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 1,280 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $570,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% in the second 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 boosted its holdings 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 holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% during the third quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $196,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Washington Trust Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.0% in the third quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 349 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $137,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on VRTX. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $570.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Scotiabank raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $495.00 to $558.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $577.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.00.

Key Headlines Impacting Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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)

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Jonathan Biller sold 945 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total value of $459,600.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 13,659 shares in the company, valued at $6,643,054.65. The trade was a 6.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 1,846 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total transaction of $897,802.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 55,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,026,469.50. This represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 168,937 shares of company stock valued at $77,879,922. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $480.13 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $121.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.32 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $362.50 and a 12-month high of $519.68. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $465.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $431.13.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted 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). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 32.94% and a return on equity of 24.30%. The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.98 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

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.