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

Key Points

• Vertex has an average analyst rating of Moderate Buy from 29 firms (22 buy, 6 hold, 1 strong buy) and an average 12‑month price target of $555.
• Several brokers recently raised targets—Oppenheimer to $600, Citigroup to $585, UBS to $545 and Leerink to $525—while Weiss Ratings cut its view to a hold, indicating mostly bullish re‑ratings with some caution.
• In the latest quarter Vertex reported EPS of $5.03 (missed by $0.02) and revenue of $3.19B (up 9.5% YoY); the stock carries a market cap of about $111.7B and P/E ~28.7, insiders sold roughly 80,431 shares (~$37.9M) as institutions own ~91% of the stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-nine research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty-two have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $555.00.

VRTX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX opened at $439.18 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $460.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $448.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $510.77. The firm has a market cap of $111.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.65, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.36.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.05 by ($0.02). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 24.30% and a net margin of 32.94%.The company had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.98 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 16.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Joy Liu sold 978 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $449.17, for a total value of $439,288.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 21,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,806,728.61. This trade represents a 4.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Mark E. Bunnage sold 620 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total transaction of $301,537.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 7,284 shares in the company, valued at $3,542,573.40. This trade represents a 7.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 80,431 shares of company stock worth $37,875,167. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $1,440,149,000. Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.9% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,689,059 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,836,550,000 after purchasing an additional 2,053,156 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.4% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,109,200 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 17,316,344 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $7,850,544,000 after purchasing an additional 763,063 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $166,317,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

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.

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