12 Most Profitable Stocks to Invest In

8. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

On May 21, 2026, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) announced that Health Canada accepted for review a New Drug Submission for suzetrigine for the treatment of moderate-to-severe acute pain in adults. Vertex said suzetrigine is a selective NaV1.8 pain signal inhibitor and represents a new class of oral pain medicine that is not an opioid or a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. If approved, suzetrigine could become the first new class of medicine in Canada to treat acute pain in more than twenty years.

On May 5, 2026, RBC Capital analyst Brian Abrahams raised the firm’s price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) to $543 from $541 and maintained an Outperform rating on the shares. Abrahams said the stock had been weak recently due to perceptions of higher risk around the near-term catalyst path, but that decent Q1 results, operational confidence for the rest of 2026, and reaffirmation of “pove’s clean safety” were a good start toward clearing overhangs.

Earlier in May, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) reported Q1 EPS of $4.02, versus the consensus estimate of $4.31. Revenue totaled $2.99B, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.00B. CEO and President Reshma Kewalramani said Vertex was off to a “strong start” in 2026, driven by cystic fibrosis leadership, growth in sickle cell disease, beta thalassemia, and acute pain, and rapid pipeline progress. Kewalramani added that CASGEVY and JOURNAVX delivered more than 25% of the company’s growth during the quarter.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) operates as a biotechnology company in the United States, Europe, and internationally.