Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Scotiabank Analyst Says

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price objective increased by equities researchers at Scotiabank from $433.00 to $450.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “sector perform” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Scotiabank’s target price would indicate a potential downside of 0.71% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $505.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX opened at $453.20 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $377.85 and a 12-month high of $519.88. The company has a market cap of $116.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -227.74, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.41. The company’s 50 day moving average is $435.91 and its 200 day moving average is $461.85.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total transaction of $142,547.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares in the company, valued at $29,438,776.43. The trade was a 0.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,374,948,000. Parnassus Investments LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $731,283,000. Edgewood Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7,876.3% in the 3rd quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 1,546,370 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $719,186,000 after buying an additional 1,526,983 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,916,084 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,382,407,000 after buying an additional 1,117,214 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $435,899,000. 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.