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

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Wednesday morning.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on VRTX. Raymond James reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $472.00 to $509.00 in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $503.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $495.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $494.61 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -248.55 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $475.81 and a 200-day moving average of $470.31. 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 52-week low of $341.90 and a 52-week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.67 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.82 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,217,500. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at $2,217,500. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,987,006. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Stephens Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 75 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.