Vertex's vertical leap

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTX) leapt $32.73 (62%) to $85.60 on Friday after positive Phase II data for VX-661 bolstered investor confidence in the company's cystic fibrosis franchise. The stock bump translated to a market cap increase of $7.1 billion to $18.7 billion.

VX-661 as monotherapy and in combination with Kalydeco ivacaftor met the primary endpoint of reducing sweat chloride levels in patients homozygous for the delta F508 CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) mutation. The two highest doses of VX-661 plus Kalydeco met a secondary endpoint of a significant improvement in lung function (FEV1) (see B18)...