Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Stock Holdings Increased by Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 68.4% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 149,962 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 60,900 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $66,964,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,440,149,000. Capital International Investors raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.9% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,689,059 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,836,550,000 after acquiring an additional 2,053,156 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.4% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,356,766 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,521,851,000 after acquiring an additional 1,109,200 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 17,316,344 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $7,850,544,000 after acquiring an additional 763,063 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $166,317,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $542.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $580.00 price objective for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $555.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 6.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $528.04 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $134.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.32, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.29. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $447.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $455.95. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $529.14.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.06 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.02 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 6,988 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $3,144,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 26,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,739,600. This represents a 21.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total transaction of $134,746.14. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,086,446.52. The trade was a 6.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 15,833 shares of company stock worth $7,120,702 in the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.