Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-five brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fourteen have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $514.91.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.2 %

VRTX opened at $500.19 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $377.85 and a 52 week high of $519.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $492.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $466.91. The firm has a market cap of $128.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -227.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.51.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.23). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.76 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $1,615,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. The trade was a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,510,000. Czech National Bank raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $22,486,000 after acquiring an additional 3,260 shares during the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 5,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,324,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 61,161 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $24,630,000 after acquiring an additional 12,631 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 75.5% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,468 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $994,000 after purchasing an additional 1,062 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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