William Blair Analysts Raise Earnings Estimates for Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) – Analysts at William Blair upped their Q1 2024 earnings estimates for shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report issued on Wednesday, April 17th. William Blair analyst M. Minter now expects that the pharmaceutical company will post earnings per share of $3.73 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $3.70. William Blair has a “Outperform” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ current full-year earnings is $15.08 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ FY2025 earnings at $17.85 EPS.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on VRTX. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “sell” rating and issued a $371.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $515.00 target price on the stock. HC Wainwright upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $457.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $325.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $429.45.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $393.48 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 3.99 and a quick ratio of 3.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s fifty day moving average is $414.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $396.74. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $316.43 and a 52-week high of $448.40.

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. The company had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.33 EPS.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Annapolis Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth $27,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total transaction of $150,697.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at $23,755,762.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total transaction of $150,697.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at $23,755,762.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 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 $577,409.76. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,676 shares in the company, valued at $4,066,242.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.