Edward Morrow Atkinson III Sells 1,751 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) EVP Edward Morrow Atkinson III sold 1,751 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.43, for a total value of $806,212.93. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 22,046 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,150,639.78. The trade was a 7.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX traded up $3.78 on Thursday, reaching $465.02. The company had a trading volume of 1,816,913 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,542,259. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $362.50 and a 52-week high of $519.68. The company has a market cap of $117.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.79 and a beta of 0.30. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $459.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $427.29.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 31.35%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 39,035 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $17,378,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 38,147 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $16,983,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Resource Group purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth about $1,286,000. Leuthold Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth approximately $5,030,000. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 41.8% in the third quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR now owns 23,569 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $9,231,000 after buying an additional 6,942 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Vertex Pharmaceuticals News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 revenue and outlook: Vertex reported solid Q4 revenue (~$3.19B) with management forecasting 2026 revenue roughly in line with street expectations and reiterating growth from its cystic fibrosis portfolio and newer medicines — a near-term reassurance for revenue trajectory. Vertex Pharma forecasts 2026 revenue in-line, expects growth in cystic fibrosis treatments
• Positive Sentiment: Pipeline expansion: Vertex announced a partnership with WuXi to broaden its autoimmune program beyond cystic fibrosis — a strategic move that supports longer-term growth expectations and analyst bullishness on pipeline upside. Vertex Partners With WuXi To Broaden Autoimmune Pipeline Beyond Cystic Fibrosis
• Neutral Sentiment: Guidance roughly in line: The company updated FY‑2026 revenue guidance to about $13.0–13.1B (in line with consensus); EPS guidance details were limited in the release, leaving investors focused on execution rather than a big surprise. Vertex Q4 press release / slides
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst momentum/valuation coverage: Multiple analysts maintain bullish price targets (median target near $545), and commentary that VRTX is a long‑term momentum/valuation story likely helped sentiment despite mixed line‑items. Why Vertex is a Top Momentum Stock for the Long-Term
• Negative Sentiment: Small EPS miss and mixed beat: Reported EPS was $5.03 (slightly below consensus ~$5.05–5.07) — a modest disappointment even as revenue was essentially in-line/solid; some outlets noted the stock dipped on the headline EPS number. Vertex Q4 Earnings Miss Estimates (Zacks)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Several senior executives (multiple EVPs and the CAO) sold shares around Feb. 11 — a visible round of insider selling that can concern some investors even if sales may be routine or for diversification. QuiverQuant summary including insider trades

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley set a $564.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Barclays upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $414.00 to $606.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $495.00 price target on the stock. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $522.68.

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.