Canaccord Genuity Group Reaffirms "Sell" Rating for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Canaccord Genuity Group restated their sell rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) in a report issued on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $371.00 price objective on the pharmaceutical company's stock.

VRTX has been the topic of several other reports. Barclays raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. StockNews.com cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report on Saturday, March 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an overweight rating and issued a $440.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. William Blair restated an outperform rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. They issued an outperform rating and a $515.00 target price on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $420.33.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $3.68 on Friday, reaching $396.55. 1,187,932 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,260,359. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 3.78 and a current ratio of 3.99. The company's 50-day moving average is $416.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $395.51. The firm has a market cap of $102.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.35. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $316.43 and a 1-year high of $448.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.85 by $0.35. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 21.91% and a net margin of 36.68%. The business had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.33 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 3,222 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,354,013.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,250,727.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 3,222 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,354,013.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,250,727.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.