Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Has $18.42 Million Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 16.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 40,626 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 5,700 shares during the quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $18,418,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 650 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 545 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $247,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.1% in 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. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 5,026 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,279,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 28.1% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 114 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $577.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $546.00 to $541.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $590.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $554.83.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX opened at $429.85 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $362.50 and a 52 week high of $507.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.04, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $453.82 and a 200-day moving average of $449.48.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 24.30% and a net margin of 32.94%.The company had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.06 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.81 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 4,910 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.65, for a total transaction of $2,394,361.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,562,646.35. This trade represents a 21.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 58,613 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.83, for a total value of $27,479,532.79. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 58,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,630,027.22. This represents a 49.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 80,431 shares of company stock worth $37,875,167 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 adjusted EPS beat expectations ($4.47 vs. ~$4.24) and net margin/ROE remained strong; management reiterated full?year revenue guidance near the street (~$13.0B). Business Wire: Q1 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Sales growth was driven by new disease?area franchises — management said KASJEVY and GERNAVICS (and other recent launches) accounted for a sizeable portion of product growth, signaling diversification beyond cystic fibrosis. Fool: Earnings Call Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Regulatory progress continues to expand the CF franchise (FDA expanded ALYFTREK to younger patients), supporting the durable cash flow base that funds R&D and launches. Yahoo: FDA ALYFTREK Expansion
• Neutral Sentiment: Company hosted an earnings call / transcript is available — useful for investors wanting management detail on product uptake, pipeline timing and guidance assumptions. Seeking Alpha: Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Street reaction is mixed but not overwhelming; company kept FY outlook essentially unchanged (guidance ~ $13.0–13.1B), which many view as confirmation rather than an upgrade. Yahoo: Sales Beat / Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction turned negative after some outlets flagged mixed details: third?party data noted revenue/EPS discrepancies vs. certain estimates, operating cash flow fell and capex rose sharply, and notable insider sales were highlighted — these factors pressured the stock. QuiverQuant: Stock Falls on Q1
• Negative Sentiment: Some headlines described the report as “mixed” (revenue roughly in?line but not a clear beat in all feeds), which can trigger short?term selling even with solid fundamentals. Yahoo: Vertex Dips on Mixed Report

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.