Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Lowered to Equal Weight Rating by Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has $460.00 price objective on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on VRTX. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Citigroup started coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $566.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $509.00 to $418.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $494.76.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $438.40 on Thursday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $377.85 and a 1 year high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $434.56 and a 200 day moving average of $463.49.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.67 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Mutual Advisors LLC grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 3,710 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,751,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% in the third quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 804 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $374,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% during the third quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 410 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $191,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% during the third quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 892 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $415,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.