Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target Raised to $595.00

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price objective hoisted by Cantor Fitzgerald from $590.00 to $595.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also commented on VRTX. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $563.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX stock opened at $484.03 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $122.85 billion, a PE ratio of 28.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $533.67. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $473.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $461.27.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 earnings per share (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 analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.52 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 17.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total transaction of $799,779.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,709,519. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total value of $787,485.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,793,071.79. This represents a 3.20% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 17,452 shares of company stock worth $8,103,997 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 17,316,344 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,850,544,000 after buying an additional 763,063 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,689,539 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,299,569,000 after buying an additional 83,539 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,733,596 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,146,041,000 after acquiring an additional 44,537 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.4% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,356,766 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,521,851,000 after acquiring an additional 1,109,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,440,149,000. 90.96% of the stock is 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.