Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Reaches New 52-Week High at $506.15

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $506.15 and last traded at $503.03, with a volume of 152419 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $498.15.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VRTX. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $371.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, April 12th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Argus raised their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, HC Wainwright raised their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $462.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $460.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 3.29 and a current ratio of 3.50. The company has a market cap of $129.44 billion, a PE ratio of 32.33, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.39. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $475.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $437.98.

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. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 39.46% and a return on equity of 23.08%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.67 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 15,202 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $497.00, for a total transaction of $7,555,394.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 106,172 shares in the company, valued at $52,767,484. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 7,073 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $448.00, for a total transaction of $3,168,704.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $17,920,000. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 15,202 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $497.00, for a total transaction of $7,555,394.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 106,172 shares in the company, valued at $52,767,484. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 48,128 shares of company stock valued at $22,839,005. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VRTX. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Baystate Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.0% in the fourth quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

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.