Leerink Partners Boosts Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target to $525.00

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price target raised by equities researchers at Leerink Partners from $456.00 to $525.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Leerink Partners’ target price indicates a potential upside of 13.42% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $517.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $475.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $502.05.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.0%

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $462.90 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $519.68. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $435.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $426.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.45 billion, a PE ratio of 32.64 and a beta of 0.32.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.35% and a return on equity of 23.51%. The business had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.00, for a total transaction of $6,384,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,725 shares in the company, valued at $17,202,600. The trade was a 27.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.20, for a total transaction of $28,650,425.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 24,026 shares in the company, valued at $10,792,479.20. This trade represents a 72.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 151,073 shares of company stock worth $67,326,816. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,593,974,000. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.9% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,689,059 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,836,550,000 after purchasing an additional 2,053,156 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.5% in the second quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 6,151,505 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,738,650,000 after buying an additional 1,089,063 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 214.6% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 763,703 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $299,097,000 after buying an additional 520,949 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,973,777 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $10,673,126,000 after buying an additional 482,616 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.