Brokerages Set Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target at $506.70

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-six brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $506.70.

VRTX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $407.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.4 %

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $503.20 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $377.85 and a 1 year high of $519.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market cap of $129.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -228.73, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $467.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $462.69.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $1,615,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total value of $142,547.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 64,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,438,776.43. This trade represents a 0.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. DSG Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,460,000. 111 Capital bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,331,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $58,274,000. PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,061,000. Finally, Centaurus Financial Inc. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 1,995 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $803,000 after buying an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

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.