Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Earns “Buy” Rating from HC Wainwright

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at HC Wainwright in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $550.00 price objective on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. HC Wainwright’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 21.36% from the stock’s previous close.

VRTX has been the topic of a number of other reports. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $566.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $460.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $430.00 to $433.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $505.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $453.20 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $116.71 billion, a PE ratio of -227.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $435.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $461.85.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total transaction of $142,547.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,438,776.43. The trade was a 0.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. 90.96% of the stock is 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.