Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ (VRTX) Sector Perform Rating Reaffirmed at Royal Bank of Canada

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating reiterated by research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada in a research note issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $431.00 price objective on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price target would suggest a potential downside of 7.30% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 26th. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $486.36.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX stock opened at $464.92 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $341.85 and a 12 month high of $510.64. The firm has a market cap of $119.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.17 and a beta of 0.40. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $482.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $451.87.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.74% and a negative return on equity of 2.45%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.53 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total value of $1,075,521.60. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 30,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,198,300.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,217,500. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total transaction of $1,075,521.60. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 30,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,198,300.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,047 shares of company stock worth $16,843,806. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Annapolis Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth $27,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.