Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target Raised to $450.00

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its target price hoisted by Guggenheim from $445.00 to $450.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a sell rating and set a $371.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, April 12th. HC Wainwright upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $457.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $390.00 to $438.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $429.45.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $394.28 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $413.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $397.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 3.99 and a quick ratio of 3.78. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $316.43 and a 1-year high of $448.40. The company has a market cap of $101.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.35.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.85 by $0.35. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 21.91% and a net margin of 36.68%. The company had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.33 EPS. Analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 14.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 2,656 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $419.51, for a total transaction of $1,114,218.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 27,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,596,934.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 2,656 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $419.51, for a total value of $1,114,218.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 27,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,596,934.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. LSV Asset Management increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 206.3% in the 1st quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 4,751 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,240,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.6% in the 1st quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 6,737 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,759,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 69.4% in the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 6,622 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,728,000 after purchasing an additional 2,713 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 28.4% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 44,090 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $11,756,000 after purchasing an additional 9,761 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,114 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,683,000 after purchasing an additional 544 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.