New York State Teachers Retirement System Increases Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.6% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 212,829 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,325 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $83,352,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Costello Asset Management INC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.6% during the second quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 689 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $307,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.9% in the second quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 1,280 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $570,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Newman Dignan & Sheerar Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Newman Dignan & Sheerar Inc. now owns 786 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $350,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.6% during the second quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 1,635 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Washington Trust Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.4% during the second quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 323 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $144,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

More Vertex Pharmaceuticals News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Vertex reported progress advancing suzetrigine into a Phase‑3 trial for diabetic nerve pain — a meaningful new indication that could broaden revenue beyond its cystic fibrosis franchise. Vertex Advances Suzetrigine Phase 3 Trial
• Positive Sentiment: Wolfe Research upgraded the stock recently, and several sell‑side firms have raised price targets (e.g., Leerink, Wells Fargo), supporting upside expectations and a consensus target near ~$504. Vertex Stock Rating Upgraded by Wolfe Research
• Neutral Sentiment: Market recaps note short‑term price weakness even as fundamentals and analyst coverage remain constructive — context for volatile daily moves but not necessarily a change to the longer‑term thesis. Vertex Stock Dips While Market Gains: Key Facts
• Neutral Sentiment: Another market note highlighted the recent down‑day versus a broader market uptick — useful color for traders but not new company‑specific catalysts. Vertex Stock Falls Amid Market Uptick
• Negative Sentiment: Two senior executives disclosed sizable open‑market sales this week — EVP Charles Wagner Jr. sold 9,532 shares (~$4.4M at ~$461/share) and EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares (~$2.14M at ~$475/share). Large insider sales can pressure sentiment even if not tied to company fundamentals. Charles Wagner, Jr. Sells 9,532 Shares
• Negative Sentiment: Separate filing shows EVP Ourania Tatsis’ 4,500‑share sale and a near‑10% reduction in her position — another factor likely weighing on intraday selling pressure. Ourania Tatsis Insider Sale
• Negative Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha piece and some sell‑side notes discuss the near‑term cost and execution risk of expanding beyond cystic fibrosis, which can temper investor appetite until new indications (like suzetrigine) de‑risk. The Cost Of Growing Beyond Cystic Fibrosis (Rating Downgrade)

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on VRTX shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $455.00 to $445.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $564.00 price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Barclays increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Wolfe Research upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $548.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $423.00 to $415.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $503.80.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $463.86 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $362.50 and a 12 month high of $519.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.69 billion, a PE ratio of 32.71 and a beta of 0.31. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $443.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $427.17.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.58 by $0.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 31.35%.The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.38 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total value of $2,137,455.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $449.20, for a total transaction of $28,650,425.20. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 24,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,792,479.20. This trade represents a 72.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 165,105 shares of company stock valued at $73,858,523 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.