Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Sold by FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co

FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co cut its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 12.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,589 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 226 shares during the quarter. FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $707,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,933,000. Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $721,000. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.7% in the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 39,035 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $17,378,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393 shares during the period. Bailard Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 38,147 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $16,983,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SteelPeak Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth $10,059,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $421.03 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $106.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.10 and a beta of 0.36. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $362.50 and a 1 year high of $519.68. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $410.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $425.78.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 31.86%.The company had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.38 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on VRTX. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Guggenheim decreased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $558.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $455.00 to $445.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $490.00 price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $491.95.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 53,604 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $440.72, for a total transaction of $23,624,354.88. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 24,026 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,588,738.72. This represents a 69.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.