UPDATE: Goldman Sachs Upgrades Vertex Pharmaceuticals to Neutral on '661/Kalydeco Data

In a report published Friday, Goldman Sachs analyst Terence Flynn upgraded the rating on Vertex Pharmaceuticals

from Sell to Neutral, and raised the price target from $38.00 to $86.00. In the report, Flynn noted, “We are upgrading VRTX to Neutral from Sell. Since being added to the Americas Sell List (11/2/2012), VRTX is +18% vs. the S&P 500 which is +9%. Shares are +49% over the past 12 months while the S&P 500 is +11%. Our Sell thesis was based on our cautious view on VRTX's key pipeline program (cystic fibrosis, CF combo) following our analysis of the prior Phase 1/2 data. However, we were clearly wrong given the ‘661/Kalydeco combo Phase 2 data reported on April 18.” Vertex Pharmaceuticals closed on Thursday at $52.87.