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

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Sunday.

VRTX has been the subject of several other research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Bank of America raised 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. Truist Financial began coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $542.00 price objective on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $577.00 to $572.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $541.00 to $543.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $555.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $491.34 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $507.92. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $442.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $454.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $124.70 billion, a PE ratio of 29.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.06 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 17.02 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total value of $469,222.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 20,729 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,810,239.58. This represents a 5.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 318 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.73, for a total value of $134,746.14. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,086,446.52. This represents a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 16,215 shares of company stock valued at $7,272,420. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Western Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 159.7% during the 1st quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,631 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $728,000 after buying an additional 1,003 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 16.7% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 88,863 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $39,681,000 after buying an additional 12,721 shares in the last quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 16.1% during the first quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services now owns 7,211 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,220,000 after acquiring an additional 999 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.4% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,522 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,466,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% during the first quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 5,608 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,504,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. 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.