Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Posted by Francis Steltz on Aug 21st, 2026

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX – Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $546.86 and last traded at $543.0780, with a volume of 378432 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $528.19.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $500.00 price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $615.00 to $617.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $563.50.

Get Our Latest Research Report on VRTX

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $490.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $465.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $137.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.74 by ($0.01). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.00% and a return on equity of 23.09%. The company had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.52 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total value of $787,485.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,793,071.79. This represents a 3.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 596 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $482.50, for a total transaction of $287,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 15,337 shares in the company, valued at $7,400,102.50. This represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 10,464 shares of company stock valued at $4,959,397 in the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $228,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,929 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $5,311,000 after purchasing an additional 986 shares in the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 604 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.3% during the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,291 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,246,000 after buying an additional 1,518 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.