Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Given New $600.00 Price Target at HC Wainwright

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price target lifted by HC Wainwright from $500.00 to $600.00 in a report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. HC Wainwright currently has a buy rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

VRTX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Truist Financial reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $550.00 price objective (up previously from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a hold rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 26th. Evercore ISI raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an in-line rating to an outperform rating and set a $438.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, June 27th. They issued a buy rating and a $545.00 price target for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $485.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.5 %

VRTX stock traded down $2.62 during trading on Monday, reaching $474.29. 1,624,696 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,220,707. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $340.68 and a 12 month high of $510.64. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $479.65 and a 200 day simple moving average of $440.12. The company has a market capitalization of $122.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.78 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 3.29 and a current ratio of 3.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.74% and a negative return on equity of 2.36%. The company had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.53 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 15,202 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $497.00, for a total value of $7,555,394.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 106,172 shares in the company, valued at $52,767,484. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total value of $2,689,860.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,320,000. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 15,202 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $497.00, for a total value of $7,555,394.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 106,172 shares in the company, valued at $52,767,484. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 53,423 shares of company stock worth $25,528,865 over the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Telos Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,073 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $6,133,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.1% during the first quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 2,368 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $990,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.4% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 29,897 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $12,497,000 after buying an additional 3,999 shares during the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 216.3% during the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 4,830 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,965,000 after buying an additional 3,303 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greenwood Capital Associates LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,345 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $10,313,000 after buying an additional 2,576 shares during the last quarter. 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.