Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Rating Reiterated by Needham & Company LLC

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)‘s stock had its “hold” rating restated by research analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a research report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports.

VRTX has been the subject of several other reports. Robert W. Baird downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $325.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $371.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $508.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $432.18.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $418.82 on Tuesday. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $408.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $400.75. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $320.01 and a 1 year high of $448.40. The company has a market capitalization of $108.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.39.

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

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total transaction of $150,697.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,755,762.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,293 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $933,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the period. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 636 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,932 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,193,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,001 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $407,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC now owns 800 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $326,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.