Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target Lowered to $438.00 at Scotiabank

Key Points

• Scotiabank has lowered its price target for Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $442.00 to $438.00, suggesting an upside potential of 11.26% from the current price.
• Various analysts have given mixed ratings for Vertex Pharmaceuticals; fourteen analysts rated it as hold, while twelve recommended a buy.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals reported a quarterly earnings per share of $4.52, exceeding estimates and reflecting a revenue increase of 11.3% year-over-year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) had its price target cut by Scotiabank from $442.00 to $438.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the pharmaceutical company's stock.

VRTX has been the subject of a number of other reports. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $439.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $430.00 to $405.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Wolfe Research lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Leerink Partners reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $503.00 target price (down from $550.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $497.10.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX stock traded up $0.28 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $385.93. The stock had a trading volume of 1,550,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,608,776. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 2.52. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $453.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $466.25. The stock has a market cap of $99.11 billion, a PE ratio of 27.56 and a beta of 0.44. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $372.35 and a 52-week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.28. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 23.91%. The company had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($12.83) EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 60,572.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,425,070 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,175,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,421,073 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $11,406,667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,993 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,428,951 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $4,199,713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,426,746 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 72.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,917,227 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,414,331,000 after buying an additional 1,226,527 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.5% in the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 6,151,505 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,738,650,000 after buying an additional 1,089,063 shares during the period. 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.