Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Given New $500.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its target price reduced by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $503.00 to $500.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 25.86% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on VRTX. HC Wainwright decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $600.00 to $535.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $486.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Raymond James reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report 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 issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $499.65.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.2 %

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $397.27 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $102.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -199.63 and a beta of 0.36. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $470.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $475.30.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 410,359 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $190,850,000 after buying an additional 21,649 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.1% in the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 3,279 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,525,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth about $7,912,000. American Trust bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $680,000. Finally, Tri Ri Asset Management Corp bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $8,726,000. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

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.