Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Sets New 1-Year High at $448.59

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $448.59 and last traded at $447.93, with a volume of 254198 shares. The stock had previously closed at $442.00.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Maxim Group cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $508.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $432.18.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $410.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $405.48. The company has a market cap of $115.49 billion, a PE ratio of 28.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 3.29, a current ratio of 3.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.66 by $1.10. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.08% and a net margin of 39.46%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.67 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total value of $150,697.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at $23,755,762.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SageView Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 28.5% in the 3rd quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,302 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $800,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 92.7% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 106 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 169,537 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $58,955,000 after buying an additional 3,852 shares in the last quarter. STF Management LP lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 153.9% in the 3rd quarter. STF Management LP now owns 4,227 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,470,000 after buying an additional 2,562 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Camden National Bank raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Camden National Bank now owns 19,658 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $6,836,000 after purchasing an additional 1,053 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.