Needham & Company LLC Reiterates Hold Rating for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)‘s stock had its “hold” rating restated by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on VRTX. Citigroup initiated coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $503.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $499.77.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $397.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $102.31 billion, a P/E ratio of -199.63 and a beta of 0.36. The company’s fifty day moving average is $470.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $475.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,816,249 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,495,501,000 after acquiring an additional 90,173 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,550,386 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,581,373,000 after purchasing an additional 851,054 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,798,870 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,231,858,000 after purchasing an additional 704,421 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,905,705 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,351,385,000 after purchasing an additional 159,693 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,516,831 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,170,506,000 after purchasing an additional 100,114 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

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.