Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $633.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $570.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $560.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $436.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $525.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $579.81.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.4%

VRTX stock opened at $501.95 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $403.16 and a 12 month high of $560.25. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $523.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $481.20. The stock has a market cap of $127.39 billion, a PE ratio of 29.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.28.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.74 by ($0.01). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.00% and a return on equity of 23.09%. The firm had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.52 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post 16.73 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 14.6% during the third quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 982 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $513,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Abel Hall LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.0% in the third quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 1,092 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $571,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. James T. Borello RIA acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth about $50,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 5,673 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,966,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. now owns 558 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $292,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated is a global biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing medicines for serious diseases. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, the company applies expertise in the science of human disease to discover therapies that address significant unmet medical needs.

Vertex is best known for its cystic fibrosis portfolio, which includes Kalydeco, Orkambi, Symdeko/Symkevi, and Trikafta/Kaftrio. These medicines target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis for patients with specific mutations in the CFTR gene.