Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Purchases 409 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 3.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,500 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 409 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $5,565,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 450.0% during the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 55 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Flaharty Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at about $32,000. American National Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 515.4% during the second quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 80 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at about $46,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Bruce I. Sachs purchased 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $389.68 per share, with a total value of $1,948,400.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 45,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,535,600. This trade represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $414.86 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $106.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.65 and a beta of 0.43. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $394.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $440.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.90 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 23.91%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($12.83) earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on VRTX shares. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $485.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $442.00 to $438.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $460.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial set a $490.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $494.43.

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.