Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target Raised to $500.00

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its target price upped by TD Cowen from $450.00 to $500.00 in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. TD Cowen’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 1.34% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “sell” rating and set a $371.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, April 12th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $438.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $440.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $460.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.5 %

VRTX traded down $2.50 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $493.41. 479,907 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,211,553. The company has a current ratio of 3.50, a quick ratio of 3.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $340.20 and a 1 year high of $498.77. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $469.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $435.47. The firm has a market cap of $127.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.39.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.66 by $1.10. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 39.46% and a return on equity of 23.08%. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.67 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 2,350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $439.11, for a total value of $1,031,908.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 53,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,502,484.53. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.34, for a total value of $1,111,135.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 27,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,557,311.46. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 2,350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $439.11, for a total transaction of $1,031,908.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 53,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,502,484.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 30,646 shares of company stock worth $14,169,923 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,293 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $933,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 636 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $259,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,932 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,193,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,001 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $407,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.0% during the second quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 423 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $198,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.