DAVENPORT & Co LLC Reduces Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

DAVENPORT & Co LLC trimmed its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 211,577 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 5,707 shares during the quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $95,938,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,216,865 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $9,484,293,000 after acquiring an additional 243,088 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 16,553,281 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,482,978,000 after purchasing an additional 444,990 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.9% in 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 purchasing an additional 2,053,156 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% in the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,522,586 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,771,226,000 after purchasing an additional 144,266 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,813,378 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,697,716,000 after purchasing an additional 65,047 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX stock opened at $448.62 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $468.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $441.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.26, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.31. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $512.71.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by ($0.02). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 24.30% and a net margin of 32.94%.The business had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.98 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRTX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $546.00 to $541.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $411.00 to $441.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $591.00 to $641.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Leerink Partners lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $554.30.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 58,613 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.83, for a total transaction of $27,479,532.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,630,027.22. This represents a 49.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 4,910 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.65, for a total transaction of $2,394,361.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 17,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,562,646.35. The trade was a 21.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 93,485 shares of company stock valued at $43,967,586 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Key Vertex Pharmaceuticals News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Truist raised its price target to $525 (maintained Buy) after encouraging Week‑36 interim results from Vertex’s Phase 3 RAINIER study — a direct catalyst supporting higher upside expectations for Vertex’s renal program. Truist Raises Vertex (VRTX) Price Target Following Phase 3 Trial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are repricing Vertex higher on a shifting narrative beyond cystic fibrosis toward nephrology — a published fair‑value lift to ~$547.72 cites povetacicept data in IgA nephropathy and multiple price‑target upgrades, which supports a longer‑term rerating. How The Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) Story Is Shifting Toward Nephrology And Beyond Cystic Fibrosis
• Neutral Sentiment: Retail/bullish commentary surfaced summarizing a Reddit thesis that highlights Vertex’s cash flow, margins and pipeline as reasons to buy; useful for sentiment but not a formal catalyst. Is Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (VRTX) A Good Stock To Buy Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks published a note flagging increased investor attention to VRTX — this highlights elevated interest but doesn’t by itself change fundamentals. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (VRTX) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reports circulated describing a “large increase,” but the underlying data in the feeds shows 0 shares / NaN and a 0.0 days‑to‑cover — indicating a likely reporting glitch rather than meaningful new short activity. This noisy data is unlikely to explain today’s move.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.