It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX). Shares have added about 0.2% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Vertex due for a pullback? Well, first let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the recent catalysts for Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late.
Q1 Earnings & Revenues Beat
Vertex’s reported adjusted earnings of $4.47 per share for the first quarter of 2026, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.23. Earnings rose around 10.1% year over year on higher product revenues, partially offset by higher operating expenses.
First-quarter total revenues of $2.99 billion slightly beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.98 billion. Total revenues rose 8% year over year, primarily driven by higher sales of CF drugs and meaningful contributions from new non-CF products, Journavx and Casgevy.
Its total revenues rose 7% year over year in the United States to $1.78 billion, driven by strong demand for CF drugs, higher realized net prices in CF and Casgevy and Journavx sales. Outside the U.S. market, sales increased 9% to $1.21 billion, driven by strong CF growth, contribution from Casgevy and a favorable impact from foreign exchange.
Quarter in Detail
The company currently markets four CF products — Trikafta/Kaftrio, Symdeko (marketed as Symkevi in Europe), Orkambi and Kalydeco.
Trikafta generated sales worth $2.35 billion, down 7.5% year over year. The product’s sales missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.39 billion.
Alyftrek generated sales worth $424.4 million in the first quarter compared with $380.1 million in the fourth quarter. Alyftrek sales beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $408 million. The drug has now surpassed $1 billion in cumulative global revenue since its approval.
Vertex said that the U.S. and European launch of Alyftrek is progressing well. Outside the United States, the company signed reimbursement agreements for Alyftrek in 11 countries during the first quarter alone
Revenues from other CF products (including Kalydeco, Orkambi, and Symdeko/Symkevi) decreased 12.5% year over year to $135.9 million.
Vertex expects incremental patients from the label expansions for Alyftrek and Trikafta, along with launches of Alyftrek in additional geographies and for treating younger patients to drive CF growth through the rest of the year.
In the first quarter, products from Vertex’s new non-CF disease areas, namely Casgevy and Journavx, drove approximately 25% of total product revenue growth.
Casgevy’s sales were $42.9 million in the first quarter of 2026, down from $54.3 million recorded in the fourth quarter of 2025 due to quarter-to-quarter variability in Casgevy infusions.
Nonetheless, the launch of Casgevy is gaining traction across the United States, Europe and the Middle East, with more than 500 patients having started treatment since launch, hundreds completing initial cell collection, and many already reaching the stage where edited cells are ready for infusion.
Vertex is also making rapid progress in the drug’s access and reimbursement and secured a pricing agreement for Casgevy in Germany in the first quarter.
In 2026, Vertex expects continued quarter-to-quarter variability in Casgevy infusions, which the company expects will smooth out in 2027 and beyond.
Journavx (suzetrigine) generated $29 million in sales in the first quarter compared with $26.7 million in the fourth quarter. Prescription growth remains strong, although first-quarter revenues reflected some normal inventory destocking.
More than 350,000 prescriptions were written for Journavx across both hospital and retail settings in the quarter, compared with approximately 550,000 in all of 2025, showing that uptake is accelerating. In 2026, Vertex expects Journavx prescriptions to triple compared to 550,000 written in 2025, supported by a larger commercial field force, wider payer coverage, and improving gross-to-net economics.
Journavx’s reimbursement trends are also improving. Coverage has expanded to about 240 million lives, supported by agreements with all three national commercial pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). The company secured its first Medicare Part D coverage agreement with a major PBM, effective May 1. Discussions are continuing with the remaining major Medicare plans and regional payers, which could further expand access. Twenty-two states now provide coverage for Journavx via Medicaid.
Costs Rise
Adjusted research and development (R&D) expenses declined 2.2% year over year to $859.3 million due to the timing and mix of certain clinical trial expenses.
Adjusted selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses rose 29.8% to $432.2 million in the reported quarter, primarily to support the launch of Journavx and the upcoming launches in renal.
During the quarter, Vertex recorded acquired in-process research and development (AIPR&D) costs of $0.5 million compared with $19.8 million in the year-ago quarter.
Adjusted operating income rose 11% year over year to $1.31 billion in the quarter.
VRTX's 2026 Guidance
Vertex reiterated its full-year 2026 guidance that it had provided earlier this year.
The company continues to expect total revenues to be in the range of $12.95-$13.10 billion for 2026, reflecting 8% to 9% growth versus the prior year.
In addition to continued growth in CF, Vertex expects non-CF products to generate revenues of $500 million plus in 2026, representing year-over-year growth of around 185%, driven by growing Casgevy infusions and a meaningful ramp in Journavx prescriptions and revenues.
Combined adjusted R&D, AIPR&D and SG&A expense guidance for 2026 is in the band of $5.65-$5.75 billion. The adjusted tax rate is expected to be in the range of 19.5%-20.5%.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
Since the earnings release, investors have witnessed a upward trend in estimates review.
VGM Scores
At this time, Vertex has a average Growth Score of C, however its Momentum Score is doing a bit better with a B. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock was allocated a grade of C on the value side, putting it in the middle 20% for value investors.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Interestingly, Vertex has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
