Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $1.10 EPS

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) posted its earnings results on Monday. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.66 by $1.10, Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. The company’s revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.67 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals updated its FY 2024 guidance to EPS.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX opened at $410.24 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $408.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $400.75. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $320.01 and a 12-month high of $448.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $106.03 billion, a PE ratio of 29.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 3.99 and a quick ratio of 3.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $417.00 to $424.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $462.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $390.00 to $438.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $432.18.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $577,409.76. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,676 shares in the company, valued at $4,066,242.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $577,409.76. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,066,242.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares in the company, valued at $31,819,732.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249 over the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.