5 Biotech Stocks With The Biggest Upside

2. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 27  

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) is a biotechnology company that engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis. In early December, the company announced a four-year global research collaboration with Entrada Therapeutics targeting muscular disorder myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1). Per the deal, the former will take over the global development, manufacturing, and commercialization of the DM1 program ENTR-701, which is currently in late-stage pre-clinical studies, of the latter. Entrada will receive $224 million in return as an upfront payment and $26 million as an equity investment.

On November 17, Argus analyst Jasper Hellweg maintained a Buy rating on Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) stock and raised the price target to $340 from $320, highlighting that the company continues to benefit from high sales of Trikafta, its pipeline progress, and partnerships with other organizations.

Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, New York-based investment firm Renaissance Technologies is a leading shareholder in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) with 2.1 million shares worth more than $619 million. 

In its Q3 2022 investor letter, Artisan Partners, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

“Biotechnology company Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) dominates the market for the treatment of cystic fibrosis (CF) with limited competition. In addition to solid growth in CF revenues that has driven better-than-expected results, positive progress in its development pipeline has lifted shares. At the time of our Q2 2021 purchase, the stock was under pressure due to regulatory hurdles and Vertex’s decision not to pursue late-stage development of VX-864 after an unexpectedly unfavorable outcome. VX-864 is designed to treat alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD), which is an inherited disorder with a strong correlation to pediatric liver disease. Irrespective of Vertex’s AATD pipeline, the company has nearly two decades of patent protection remaining for its CF franchise. Management maintains a healthy reserve of cash and is focusing on research and development. We believe near-term growth is likely to be driven by Vertex’s expanding geographic presence and expansion of medicines to lower age groups, with long-term gains arising from the company’s diversifying pipeline.”