Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Downgraded by Wells Fargo & Company to “Equal Weight”

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) was downgraded by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $460.00 price objective on the pharmaceutical company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target indicates a potential downside of 0.36% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $502.58.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX opened at $461.68 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $118.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -232.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.40. The company’s fifty day moving average is $434.34 and its 200-day moving average is $463.31. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.67 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals will post -1.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Edgewood Management LLC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7,876.3% in the 3rd quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 1,546,370 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $719,186,000 after buying an additional 1,526,983 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $435,899,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,550,386 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,581,373,000 after purchasing an additional 851,054 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,798,870 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,231,858,000 after purchasing an additional 704,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 169.4% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 839,672 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $338,136,000 after purchasing an additional 528,029 shares during 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.