Morgan Stanley Increases Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target to $476.00

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its target price raised by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $473.00 to $476.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective suggests a potential downside of 3.57% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $505.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Barclays lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $472.00 to $509.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $431.00 to $425.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $541.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $495.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of VRTX opened at $493.64 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $474.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $466.95. The company has a market cap of $127.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -248.06 and a beta of 0.39. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $341.90 and a one year high of $510.64. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.88% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.67 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the business’s 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 $2,217,500. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the director now owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,217,500. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the firm’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 owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,987,006. 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 currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Adero Partners LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.2% in the third quarter. Adero Partners LLC now owns 1,342 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $624,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 303.9% in the third quarter. Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors LLC now owns 1,769 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $823,000 after buying an additional 1,331 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 461,886 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $214,813,000 after acquiring an additional 25,301 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 289.0% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 77,393 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $35,994,000 after acquiring an additional 57,497 shares during the period. Finally, Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. now owns 1,523 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $708,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.