HC Wainwright Reiterates Buy Rating for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by equities researchers at HC Wainwright in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $600.00 price objective on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. HC Wainwright’s target price points to a potential upside of 24.22% from the stock’s previous close.

VRTX has been the subject of a number of other reports. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $541.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. StockNews.com cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $505.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $492.92.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 3.2 %

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $483.00 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a current ratio of 2.52. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a one year low of $341.90 and a one year high of $510.64. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $475.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $460.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.66 billion, a PE ratio of -237.93 and a beta of 0.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($12.54) by ($0.29). The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.66 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.45% and a negative net margin of 4.74%. The business’s revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.53 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $488.46, for a total value of $1,113,688.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,474,779.94. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $488.46, for a total transaction of $1,113,688.80. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,474,779.94. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total value of $2,689,860.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,320,000. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,285 shares of company stock valued at $7,101,755. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Annapolis Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 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 acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ZRC Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

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.