Recent Analysts’ Ratings Changes for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX)

Posted by Latisha Jones on Aug 22nd, 2024

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX) recently received a number of ratings updates from brokerages and research firms:

8/5/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $505.00 to $510.00. They now have an “overweight” rating on the stock.
8/5/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. from $500.00 to $550.00. They now have an “outperform” rating on the stock.
8/5/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating.
8/5/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals was downgraded by analysts at Barclays PLC from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating. They now have a $509.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $472.00.
8/5/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at HC Wainwright from $500.00 to $600.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.
8/5/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Truist Financial Co.. They now have a $550.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $508.00.
8/2/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its “overweight” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald. They now have a $480.00 price target on the stock.
8/2/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at Piper Sandler from $500.00 to $535.00. They now have an “overweight” rating on the stock.
8/2/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at Guggenheim from $450.00 to $558.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.
7/31/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. from $371.00 to $376.00. They now have a “sell” rating on the stock.
7/26/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its “hold” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Needham & Company LLC.
7/26/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating.
7/23/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at TD Cowen from $450.00 to $500.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.
7/22/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald from $440.00 to $480.00. They now have an “overweight” rating on the stock.
7/19/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at HC Wainwright from $462.00 to $500.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.
7/11/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $402.00 to $455.00. They now have an “equal weight” rating on the stock.
7/2/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating.
6/27/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals is now covered by analysts at Redburn Atlantic. They set a “buy” rating and a $545.00 price target on the stock.
6/24/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals had its price target raised by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $540.00 to $555.00. They now have an “overweight” rating on the stock.
6/24/2024 – Vertex Pharmaceuticals was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of VRTX stock traded down $6.22 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $479.89. The company had a trading volume of 1,106,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,212,105. The company’s fifty day moving average is $480.95 and its 200 day moving average is $443.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 2.52 and a quick ratio of 2.26. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $340.83 and a fifty-two week high of $510.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $123.86 billion, a PE ratio of 31.14 and a beta of 0.39.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 2.45% and a negative net margin of 4.74%. The company had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.53 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $457.00, for a total transaction of $715,205.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,467,918. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CFO Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.79, for a total value of $1,478,067.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,387 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,915,503.73. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $457.00, for a total transaction of $715,205.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,374 shares in the company, valued at $55,467,918. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 48,630 shares of company stock valued at $23,447,151 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VRTX. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21,750.1% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 115,150 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $46,853,000 after buying an additional 114,623 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $239,000. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,565 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,264,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 330.7% in the 4th quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,618 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,472,000 after buying an additional 2,778 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 25.1% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 807 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $328,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.