Case 23 Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals is a global biotechnology company which focuses on specialty markets to create innovative medicines for treating serious diseases like cystic fibrosis. Vertex have a pipeline of investigational therapies to find cure for diseases like sickle cell disease, beta thalassemia, APOL1-mediated kidney disease, type 1 diabetes, pain, alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, and muscular dystrophies. The four medicines TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO, SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI, ORKAMBI, and KALYDECO are used to treat over 83,000 people for cystic fibrosis in regions of North America, Europe, and Australia. As of December 31, 2021, the company had approximately 3900 employees. The common stock of Vertex is traded on Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “VRTX.” The company has headquarters in Boston and London. Vertex focuses on investment in R&D to discover and develop innovative medicines by combining transformative advances in the field of human diseases and the science of therapeutics. Vertex focuses on strategic alliances and M&A as a part of its growth strategy. An investment of $100 in the Vertex Pharma stock on July 24,1991 would have led to the invested amount accumulated to $7141.56 by December 3, 2022, reflecting a return of 7041.56%. The total cumulative monthly return for Vertex stock was 82.6% during the period 2018–2022.