HC Wainwright Cuts Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target to $535.00

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) had its price target decreased by HC Wainwright from $600.00 to $535.00 in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat reports. HC Wainwright currently has a buy rating on the pharmaceutical company's stock.

Several other brokerages have also commented on VRTX. Bank of America cut their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $451.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $499.77.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $0.63 on Friday, reaching $397.27. 6,202,268 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,238,190. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $377.85 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The company's 50 day moving average is $470.41 and its 200-day moving average is $475.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $102.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -199.63 and a beta of 0.36.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $662,000. Creative Planning grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.3% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 79,117 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $37,084,000 after purchasing an additional 3,998 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 289.0% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 77,393 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $35,994,000 after buying an additional 57,497 shares during the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at $21,008,000. Finally, Keynote Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $498,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

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.