Key Points
Vertex Pharmaceuticals most important business should still drive sales growth in the 12 months.
The biotech could have an improved lineup by next year.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX) has significantly underperformed broader equities over the past 12 months, with its shares down 10% since March of 2025, compared to a 15% gain for the S&P 500. However, ongoing developments suggest that the biotech leader could be staging a rebound, and if it does, now might be a great time to buy the stock. Let's see how things could unfold for Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the next year.
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The core franchise will still be healthy
Vertex Pharmaceuticals makes most of its money from the sale of medicines for cystic fibrosis (CF), a rare disease that affects the lungs and other organs and causes difficulty breathing. Vertex Pharmaceuticals' most important therapies for CF are Trikafta, which treats up to 90% of CF patients, and the newer Alyftrek, which offers the added benefit of once-daily dosing.
Both products are still driving top-line growth. Vertex's revenue in 2025 increased 9% year over year to $12 billion. Over the next 12 months, they should remain the core of Vertex's business, as the company still has meaningful progress to make in the global CF market, where it is the only player. Vertex's revenue from its core CF franchise could grow at high single or low double-digit rates over the next year.
Making steady progress elsewhere
Vertex Pharmaceuticals expects its newer products, including Journavx for acute pain and Casgevy, a gene editing drug for sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia, to generate at least $500 million in revenue this year. That would be a strong performance for the company's non-CF portfolio, and it could just be the start of a new era at Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Over the next year, the biotech could see important pipeline and regulatory progress for several candidates.
First, there is povetacicept, a therapy for IgA nephropathy (a kidney disease) that has just performed well in phase 3 studies. Vertex Pharmaceuticals plans to request approval for it by the end of March. That means it could earn regulatory approval by the end of the year or in early 2027. Vertex Pharmaceuticals also expects to release results from a phase 3 clinical trial of inaxaplin, an investigational medicine for APOL-1-mediated kidney disease, this year.
If the data is positive, the company will also seek regulatory approval, which could come late next year. Lastly, Vertex plans to request approval for zimislecel, a medicine for Type 1 diabetes, this year. By March of 2027, Vertex Pharmaceuticals could have a brand-new medicine in its approved product lineup while awaiting two more to receive the green light. Between the company's strong CF business and these newer approvals, the biotech's long-term prospects seem strong, making the stock a buy right now.
Prosper Junior Bakiny has positions in Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.