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

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price target reduced by Truist Financial from $550.00 to $460.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on VRTX. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $566.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Three 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 MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $494.04.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $408.18 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -205.12 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 has a 50-day simple moving average of $467.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $474.16. 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 (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for 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%. The business’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.67 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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

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.