Maxim Group Upgrades Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) to Buy

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) was upgraded by Maxim Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $575.00 price objective on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Maxim Group’s price target points to a potential upside of 25.53% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on VRTX. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $571.00 to $598.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Leerink Partners boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $548.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Twenty-four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $554.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX opened at $458.05 on Wednesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $362.50 and a 1 year high of $515.67. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $469.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $439.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $116.36 billion, a PE ratio of 29.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.31.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.05 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 24.30% and a net margin of 32.94%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.98 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 260 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total transaction of $126,451.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,743,185.05. The trade was a 0.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 1,846 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total value of $897,802.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 55,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,026,469.50. This represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 93,485 shares of company stock valued at $43,967,586. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% in the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% in the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors 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.