Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $557.0870.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $577.00 to $572.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Maxim Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX traded down $11.11 on Friday, reaching $485.39. The company had a trading volume of 1,430,186 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,935,645. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $533.67. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $457.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $458.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $123.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.06 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 17.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Vertex Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vertex’s $10 billion acquisition of Crinetics is being seen as a major expansion move that could add future growth drivers beyond its core cystic fibrosis business. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Investors continue to highlight Vertex as a strong long-term compounder, with articles pointing to its decade-long stock performance and durable earnings power. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage on Vertex as one of the best QQQ stocks emphasized the July 1 FDA expansion for CASGEVY, which strengthened the company’s gene-therapy growth story. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Additional biotech commentary has kept Vertex in focus as one of the sector’s more attractive names, reinforcing investor interest in the stock. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data was reported at zero shares, which does not provide a meaningful trading signal and is unlikely to move the stock on its own.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several other biotech articles mentioned Vertex only in passing or as part of broader sector coverage, with limited direct impact on VRTX.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 6,988 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $3,144,600.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 26,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,739,600. This represents a 21.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total value of $799,779.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,709,519. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,874 shares of company stock worth $8,707,966. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $228,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,929 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,311,000 after buying an additional 986 shares during the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% during the second quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 604 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.3% during the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,291 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,246,000 after buying an additional 1,518 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.