Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $510.70 and last traded at $510.38, with a volume of 42505 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $502.45.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRTX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $480.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Royal Bank of Canada raised 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. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $495.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $133.08 billion, a PE ratio of -259.67 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company’s 50 day moving average is $475.40 and its 200-day moving average is $468.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.67 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.0% during the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 75 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.