American Trust Reduces Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

American Trust reduced its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 13.4% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,302 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 201 shares during the quarter. American Trust’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $631,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the period. Graham Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $229,000. Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 30,111 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $12,126,000 after acquiring an additional 2,978 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6,487.2% during the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 526,119 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $211,867,000 after acquiring an additional 518,132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 189,260 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $76,211,000 after acquiring an additional 567 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX stock opened at $395.25 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $362.50 and a 1 year high of $519.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.25 and a beta of 0.44. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $427.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $455.60.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($12.83) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $389.68 per share, with a total value of $1,948,400.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 45,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,535,600. The trade was a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $485.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $515.00 to $517.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. BMO Capital Markets set a $530.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $430.00 to $405.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $497.10.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.