Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Friday.

VRTX has been the topic of a number of other reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $397.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $390.00 to $438.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a hold rating to a sell rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $332.00 to $379.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $457.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $420.33.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX opened at $396.55 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $416.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $395.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 3.99 and a quick ratio of 3.78. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $316.43 and a 1 year high of $448.40. The firm has a market cap of $102.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.55, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.35.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.85 by $0.35. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 21.91% and a net margin of 36.68%. The business had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.33 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $577,409.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,676 shares in the company, valued at $4,066,242.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total value of $150,697.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at $23,755,762.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $577,409.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,066,242.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249. 0.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $26,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. 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.