Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Lifted to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $462.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a hold rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. They set a buy rating and a $545.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $448.61.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $470.28 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 3.29 and a current ratio of 3.50. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $335.82 and a 1 year high of $486.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $449.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $427.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.36 billion, a PE ratio of 30.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.39.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.66 by $1.10. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.08% and a net margin of 39.46%. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.67 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 2,350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.11, for a total value of $1,031,908.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 53,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,502,484.53. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 2,350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.11, for a total value of $1,031,908.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 53,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,502,484.53. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $457.00, for a total value of $715,205.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,467,918. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 28,366 shares of company stock valued at $13,058,787. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $528,000. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 52.2% during the third quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,997 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $694,000 after purchasing an additional 685 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7.4% during the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 2,654 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $923,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. JT Stratford LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 29.9% during the third quarter. JT Stratford LLC now owns 6,113 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,407 shares during the period. Finally, Seven Eight Capital LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 224.5% during the third quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP now owns 33,544 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $11,665,000 after acquiring an additional 23,206 shares during the period. 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.