Brokerages Set Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target at $511.71

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-eight ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $511.71.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VRTX. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $464.00 to $460.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 20th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $442.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $535.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Aries Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at approximately $293,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $22,954,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 45.0% during the first quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,421 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,113,000 after buying an additional 1,994 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 25.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,002 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,425,000 after buying an additional 1,005 shares during the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 189.7% during the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 359,285 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $139,724,000 after buying an additional 235,265 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded down $3.46 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $459.81. 975,143 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,419,536. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $449.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $462.88. The stock has a market cap of $118.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -117.30 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 2.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.85 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 3.36% and a negative net margin of 8.91%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.76 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.