Canaccord Genuity Group Boosts Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target to $408.00

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its price target increased by equities researchers at Canaccord Genuity Group from $361.00 to $408.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “sell” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Canaccord Genuity Group’s price target indicates a potential downside of 17.00% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $503.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Scotiabank increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $486.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Barclays downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $472.00 to $509.00 in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $495.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of VRTX traded down $8.29 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $491.59. 674,647 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,167,571. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $341.90 and a 1-year high of $510.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $126.88 billion, a PE ratio of -247.03 and a beta of 0.39. The business has a fifty day moving average of $474.73 and a 200-day moving average of $466.76.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.88% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.67 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -2.04 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,987,006. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,217,500. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total value of $1,888,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at $4,987,006. This 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 currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Stephens Consulting LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.0% in the second 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 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.