Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target Raised to $510.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price objective lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $505.00 to $510.00 in a report released on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock.

VRTX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $424.00 to $421.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Argus upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $485.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX traded down $2.62 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $474.29. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,626,006 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,220,707. The firm has a market cap of $122.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.78 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 3.29, a current ratio of 3.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $340.68 and a 1 year high of $510.64. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $479.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $440.12.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.53 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.04 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 approximately $55,467,918. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 approximately $55,467,918. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 7,073 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $448.00, for a total value of $3,168,704.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $17,920,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 53,423 shares of company stock worth $25,528,865 over the last quarter. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Baystate Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.0% during the 4th quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently 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.