Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Research Coverage Started at Scotiabank

by · The Markets Daily

Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX – Free Report) in a research note released on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued a sector perform rating and a $480.00 price objective on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $431.00 to $425.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. HC Wainwright increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price objective (up from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $492.92.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX opened at $483.00 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 2.52 and a quick ratio of 2.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $124.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.34 and a beta of 0.40. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $475.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $459.87. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $341.90 and a one year high of $510.64.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($12.54) by ($0.29). The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.66 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.74% and a negative return on equity of 2.45%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.53 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,217,500. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total transaction of $2,689,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $20,320,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,217,500. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,487 shares of company stock valued at $14,657,149 in the last 90 days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brookstone Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 2,368 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $990,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,763,000. Creative Planning lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.3% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 79,117 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $37,084,000 after buying an additional 3,998 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 640.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,443 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $676,000 after acquiring an additional 1,248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $74,213,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

(Get Free Report)

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.

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