Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $546.86 and last traded at $543.0780, with a volume of 378432 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $528.19.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VRTX. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $500.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 28th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $590.00 to $595.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $563.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 3.4%

The stock has a market cap of $138.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.80, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.30. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $486.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $464.31.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.74 by ($0.01). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.00% and a return on equity of 23.09%. The business had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.52 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total value of $787,485.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 45,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,793,071.79. This trade represents a 3.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 4,062 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $1,827,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 16,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,628,850. The trade was a 19.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 10,464 shares of company stock worth $4,959,397 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $228,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,929 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,311,000 after purchasing an additional 986 shares in the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 604 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.3% during the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,291 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,518 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.