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

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Tuesday.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $424.00 to $421.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $371.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, April 12th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $462.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $448.61.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $470.28 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $121.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a 50 day moving average of $447.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $427.70. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $335.82 and a 52-week high of $486.42. The company has a quick ratio of 3.29, a current ratio of 3.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.66 by $1.10. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 39.46% and a return on equity of 23.08%. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.67 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Edward Morrow Atkinson III sold 7,288 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.00, for a total transaction of $3,483,664.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,634,616. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 7,073 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $17,920,000. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Edward Morrow Atkinson III sold 7,288 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.00, for a total transaction of $3,483,664.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,634,616. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 28,366 shares of company stock valued at $13,058,787 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% during the fourth 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 period. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 636 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $259,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the period. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,932 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,193,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted 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, Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC now owns 800 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $326,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.