Barclays Has Lowered Expectations for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock Price

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price target trimmed by Barclays from $509.00 to $418.00 in a report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. HC Wainwright decreased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $600.00 to $535.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $486.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $499.77.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $397.27 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $102.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -199.63 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $470.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $475.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $662,000. Creative Planning grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 79,117 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $37,084,000 after purchasing an additional 3,998 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 289.0% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 77,393 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,994,000 after purchasing an additional 57,497 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $21,008,000. Finally, Keynote Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $498,000. 90.96% of the stock is 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.