AMF Tjanstepension AB Acquires 166,968 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

AMF Tjanstepension AB raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 114.4% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 312,917 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 166,968 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals accounts for about 0.9% of AMF Tjanstepension AB’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. AMF Tjanstepension AB’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $139,730,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 650 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $295,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 545 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. now owns 1,155 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $524,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 730 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 5,026 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,279,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total value of $469,222.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 20,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,810,239.58. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director owned 4,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,086,446.52. This represents a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 18,874 shares of company stock worth $8,707,966. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX opened at $485.39 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $457.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $458.32. The company has a market capitalization of $123.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $362.50 and a fifty-two week high of $533.67.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. The business’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.06 EPS. Analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.07 EPS for the current year.

Key Stories Impacting Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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

• Positive Sentiment: Vertex’s $10 billion acquisition of Crinetics is being seen as a major expansion move that could add future growth drivers beyond its core cystic fibrosis business. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Investors continue to highlight Vertex as a strong long-term compounder, with articles pointing to its decade-long stock performance and durable earnings power. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage on Vertex as one of the best QQQ stocks emphasized the July 1 FDA expansion for CASGEVY, which strengthened the company’s gene-therapy growth story. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Additional biotech commentary has kept Vertex in focus as one of the sector’s more attractive names, reinforcing investor interest in the stock. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data was reported at zero shares, which does not provide a meaningful trading signal and is unlikely to move the stock on its own.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several other biotech articles mentioned Vertex only in passing or as part of broader sector coverage, with limited direct impact on VRTX.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Barclays lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $577.00 to $572.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $557.09.

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.