Cantor Fitzgerald Reaffirms “Overweight” Rating for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)‘s stock had its “overweight” rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $480.00 price objective on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Cantor Fitzgerald’s target price would indicate a potential downside of 2.76% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 26th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $480.00 price objective on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $371.00 to $376.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Raymond James reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $495.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $493.64 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $474.81 and a 200-day moving average of $466.95. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $341.90 and a one year high of $510.64. The stock has a market cap of $127.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -248.06 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 2.52 and a quick ratio of 2.26.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.88%. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.67 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at $2,217,500. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,987,006. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 transaction of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,217,500. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norden Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 61.3% in the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 992 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $415,000 after buying an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth $205,000. Quent Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 33.0% in the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 399 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.2% in the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,325 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $554,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 714.3% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 228 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $95,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.