Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 295,605 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 35.5% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 537,248 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 295,605 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $239,903,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% in the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% during the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on VRTX. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $577.00 to $572.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Citigroup raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $571.00 to $598.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $555.91.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 1,020 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $462.17, for a total value of $471,413.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 15,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,363,754.61. This trade represents a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total transaction of $134,746.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,086,446.52. This trade represents a 6.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 16,215 shares of company stock valued at $7,272,420 over the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $475.20 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $440.46 and its 200-day moving average is $453.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.61 billion, a PE ratio of 28.19, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $362.50 and a 52 week high of $507.92.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.06 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Headlines Impacting Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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

• Positive Sentiment: Vertex received an upgrade-driven boost from commentary highlighting povetacicept as a potential new growth driver, reinforcing optimism that the company’s pipeline can support earnings beyond its cystic fibrosis franchise. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: New pediatric data for CASGEVY showed strong clinical benefits and a consistent safety profile in children, supporting Vertex’s regulatory and commercial outlook for its CRISPR-based therapy. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains constructive, with multiple firms reiterating bullish views and price targets above the current share price, suggesting continued institutional confidence in Vertex’s longer-term growth story. Article Title

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.