StockNews.com Downgrades Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) to Hold

StockNews.com cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Wednesday morning.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $500.00 to $550.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their target price for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $505.61.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $484.24 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $436.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $460.70. The company has a market cap of $124.35 billion, a P/E ratio of -220.11, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. Sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of VRTX. ABC Arbitrage SA acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,510,000. Czech National Bank boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $22,486,000 after acquiring an additional 3,260 shares during the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 5,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,324,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $662,000. Finally, Davidson Investment Advisors boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.0% during the fourth quarter. Davidson Investment Advisors now owns 61,161 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $24,630,000 after acquiring an additional 12,631 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.