Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock Price Up 1.8% – Should You Buy?

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)’s share price shot up 1.8% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $494.41 and last traded at $492.56. 168,654 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 1,283,260 shares. The stock had previously closed at $484.01.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VRTX. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $480.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $500.00 to $550.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $509.17.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $121.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -215.74, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $481.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $463.73.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued 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 return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 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.