Royal Bank of Canada Issues Positive Forecast for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock Price

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price objective raised by equities research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $402.00 to $407.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “sector perform” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective points to a potential downside of 11.36% from the company’s previous close.

VRTX has been the subject of several other reports. Oppenheimer cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $566.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $502.79.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX traded down $10.83 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $459.14. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 665,811 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,558,786. The company has a market cap of $118.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -230.79, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $435.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $462.13. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $377.85 and a 1 year high of $519.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.94 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $33,000. 90.96% of the stock is 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.