Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Receives $495.96 Average Target Price from Brokerages

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the thirty research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $499.12.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on VRTX shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 26th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. TD Cowen upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX stock opened at $483.96 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $476.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $470.48. The company has a market capitalization of $124.63 billion, a P/E ratio of -248.55 and a beta of 0.39. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $341.90 and a 52-week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.67 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,217,500. This represents a 12.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,987,006. The trade was a 27.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 79,117 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $37,084,000 after acquiring an additional 3,998 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 640.0% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,443 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $676,000 after buying an additional 1,248 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth about $74,213,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $21,008,000. Finally, Keynote Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $498,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.