Wall Street Zen Downgrades Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) to Hold

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from “buy” to “hold,” adding to a mixed but still generally positive analyst view of the stock.
• Despite the downgrade, most analysts remain bullish: 22 analysts rate Vertex a Buy, three rate it Hold, and the consensus target price is $555.91.
• Vertex recently reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with EPS of $4.47 topping estimates and revenue rising 8.3% year over year to $2.99 billion.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Barclays upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Scotiabank upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $495.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $571.00 to $598.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $590.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $555.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of VRTX opened at $447.54 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $439.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $451.64. The stock has a market cap of $113.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.54, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $362.50 and a 52 week high of $507.92.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.06 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 16.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total value of $134,746.14. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,924 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,086,446.52. This trade represents a 6.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 6,988 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $3,144,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 26,088 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,739,600. The trade was a 21.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 11,717 shares of company stock valued at $5,309,945. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,216,865 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $9,484,293,000 after purchasing an additional 243,088 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% during the 4th 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 during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,689,539 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $5,299,569,000 after purchasing an additional 83,539 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,733,596 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,146,041,000 after purchasing an additional 44,537 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,522,586 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,771,226,000 after purchasing an additional 144,266 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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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