Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target Increased to $424.00 by Analysts at Royal Bank of Canada

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its target price hoisted by Royal Bank of Canada from $417.00 to $424.00 in a report issued on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on VRTX. HC Wainwright reissued a buy rating and set a $462.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday. Canaccord Genuity Group cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a hold rating to a sell rating and raised their price target for the company from $332.00 to $379.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a sell rating and set a $371.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, April 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an overweight rating and issued a $440.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $432.18.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $410.24 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $106.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 3.99, a quick ratio of 3.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The business’s 50 day moving average is $408.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $400.75. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $320.01 and a twelve month high of $448.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.66 by $1.10. The firm had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 21.91% and a net margin of 36.68%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.67 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 14.95 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 3,222 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,354,013.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,250,727.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,804,930.80. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,819,732.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 3,222 shares of the company’s 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 $1,354,013.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,250,727.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at $3,026,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,189 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,931,000 after purchasing an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.6% during the 1st quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. now owns 1,141 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $477,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Donoghue Forlines LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 168.4% during the 1st quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC now owns 3,757 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,570,000 after purchasing an additional 2,357 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.8% in the first quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,998 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,671,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.