Scotiabank Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price target raised by analysts at Scotiabank from $480.00 to $486.00 in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “sector perform” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Scotiabank’s target price points to a potential downside of 1.55% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $371.00 to $376.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $480.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $495.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $493.64 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $341.90 and a 12-month high of $510.64. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $474.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $466.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -248.06 and a beta of 0.39.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,217,500. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,217,500. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,987,006. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 25,567,184 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,687,339,000 after acquiring an additional 3,761,414 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,676,518 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $9,479,011,000 after purchasing an additional 394,338 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 61.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,743,882 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,401,000,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176,218 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.4% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,584,315 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,080,296,000 after buying an additional 244,336 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,422,677 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,135,556,000 after buying an additional 29,104 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.