Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Bought by Welch & Forbes LLC

Welch & Forbes LLC raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 217,244 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,605 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals makes up 1.2% of Welch & Forbes LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Welch & Forbes LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $96,717,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 450.0% in the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 55 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Flaharty Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. American National Bank & Trust grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 515.4% in the 2nd quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 80 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Solstein Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $40,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $425.57 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The business has a 50-day moving average of $401.71 and a 200-day moving average of $431.95. The company has a market capitalization of $109.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.42 and a beta of 0.43.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.28. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 31.86%.The company had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($12.83) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Bruce I. Sachs bought 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $389.68 per share, with a total value of $1,948,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 45,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,535,600. This represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $475.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $439.00 to $438.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Guggenheim lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $558.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $485.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $490.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $492.10.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.