Truist Financial Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock Price

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its target price decreased by equities researchers at Truist Financial from $550.00 to $460.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Truist Financial’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 16.17% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on VRTX. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Scotiabank raised their price target 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. StockNews.com cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $566.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $494.04.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $1.29 on Monday, reaching $395.98. 322,606 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,234,881. The company has a market capitalization of $101.98 billion, a P/E ratio of -198.98 and a beta of 0.36. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $377.85 and a 52 week high of $519.88. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $470.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $475.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.