Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) PT Set at $420.00 by Royal Bank Of Canada

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) has been assigned a $420.00 price target by Royal Bank Of Canada in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a “sector perform” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s target price points to a potential downside of 6.33% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on VRTX. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $535.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $462.00 to $464.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Leerink Partnrs lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $513.32.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $448.40 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 2.65. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $460.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $459.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $115.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -114.39 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.23). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 8.91% and a negative return on equity of 3.36%. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.76 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,374,948,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 60,572.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,425,070 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,175,722,000 after acquiring an additional 2,421,073 shares during the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $731,283,000. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $11,406,667,000 after acquiring an additional 1,514,993 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,428,951 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,199,713,000 after acquiring an additional 1,426,746 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.