Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Price Target Cut to $500.00 by Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) had its target price lowered by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $503.00 to $500.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 22.49% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $486.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Bank of America lowered their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $494.04.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $408.18 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $468.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $474.68. The company has a market cap of $105.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -205.12 and a beta of 0.36.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) 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 return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the third 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 period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.