Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ (VRTX) “Hold” Rating Reaffirmed at Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed their hold rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) in a research note published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on VRTX. Oppenheimer lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Truist Financial cut their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $460.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Citigroup started coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $505.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $462.58 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $435.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $461.79. 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 firm has a market cap of $119.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -232.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. On average, analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total value of $142,547.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,438,776.43. This represents a 0.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 55,838 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $22,486,000 after acquiring an additional 3,260 shares in the last quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $662,000. Concord Wealth Partners boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 32.6% in the 4th quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 3,508 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,413,000 after acquiring an additional 862 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 289.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 77,393 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,994,000 after acquiring an additional 57,497 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 342,429 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $137,783,000 after buying an additional 55,739 shares in 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.