Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Forecast for VRTX Earnings

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) – Zacks Research decreased their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, October 23rd. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the pharmaceutical company will earn ($2.07) per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of ($2.06). The consensus estimate for Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ current full-year earnings is ($2.11) per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Vertex Pharmaceuticals’ Q1 2025 earnings at $3.85 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $4.23 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $17.37 EPS.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on VRTX. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $431.00 to $425.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Raymond James reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $505.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Barclays cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $472.00 to $509.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $492.92.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $477.70 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a current ratio of 2.52. The company has a market capitalization of $123.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.00 and a beta of 0.40. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $341.90 and a 1 year high of $510.64. The company’s fifty day moving average is $475.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $461.87.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($12.54) by ($0.29). The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.66 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.74% and a negative return on equity of 2.45%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.53 EPS.

Institutional Trading of Vertex Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Annapolis Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total transaction of $2,689,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,320,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.75, for a total transaction of $1,086,990.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 23,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,088,728.25. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total transaction of $2,689,860.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,320,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,005 shares of company stock valued at $5,988,066 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.20% 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.