Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Upgraded at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) from a peer perform rating to an outperform rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $548.00 price target on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on VRTX. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $423.00 to $415.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $517.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $503.80.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $469.68 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $362.50 and a 12 month high of $519.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.17 billion, a PE ratio of 33.12 and a beta of 0.31. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $442.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $427.19.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.35% and a return on equity of 23.51%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.38 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $17,202,600. This represents a 27.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.20, for a total value of $28,650,425.20. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 24,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,792,479.20. This represents a 72.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 160,605 shares of company stock worth $71,721,068 in the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% in the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% in the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Flaharty Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.