Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial reissued a buy rating and set a $550.00 target price (up previously from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $505.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an overweight rating and issued a $480.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Argus lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $485.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.5 %

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $2.62 during trading on Monday, hitting $474.29. 1,626,006 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,220,707. The company has a current ratio of 3.50, a quick ratio of 3.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The business’s 50 day moving average is $479.65 and its 200 day moving average is $440.12. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $340.68 and a 52 week high of $510.64. The company has a market capitalization of $122.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.78 and a beta of 0.39.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $457.00, for a total transaction of $715,205.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,374 shares in the company, valued at $55,467,918. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total value of $2,689,860.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $20,320,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $457.00, for a total transaction of $715,205.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 121,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,467,918. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 53,423 shares of company stock valued at $25,528,865. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Telos Capital Management Inc. boosted its position 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 valued at $6,133,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 2,368 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $990,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.4% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 29,897 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $12,497,000 after acquiring an additional 3,999 shares during the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 216.3% in the 4th quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 4,830 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,965,000 after purchasing an additional 3,303 shares during the period. Finally, Greenwood Capital Associates LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,345 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,313,000 after purchasing an additional 2,576 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.