Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Hits New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) reached a new 52-week low on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $377.85 and last traded at $396.87, with a volume of 2044282 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $447.50.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $486.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $541.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $505.73.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $473.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $476.36. The firm has a market cap of $99.91 billion, a P/E ratio of -194.94 and a beta of 0.36.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.1% in the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 3,279 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,525,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth $7,912,000. American Trust acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth about $680,000. Tri Ri Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $8,726,000. Finally, Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.8% in the third quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 2,186 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after purchasing an additional 120 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.