Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wolfe Research

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) was upgraded by research analysts at Wolfe Research from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $548.00 target price on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Wolfe Research’s price objective points to a potential upside of 13.19% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on VRTX. Citigroup raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $517.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $475.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $503.80.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $484.15 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $362.50 and a 12-month high of $519.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.84 billion, a PE ratio of 34.14 and a beta of 0.31. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $441.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $426.89.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 31.35%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.38 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $449.20, for a total transaction of $28,650,425.20. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 24,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,792,479.20. The trade was a 72.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.00, for a total value of $6,384,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 37,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,202,600. The trade was a 27.07% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 151,073 shares of company stock worth $67,326,816. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% in the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $27,000. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% during the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Flaharty Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

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.