Why did Vertex's operating profit decline sharply in Q2 2024?

Vertex Pharmaceuticals' operating profit declined by 1.73% in Q2 2024, which can be attributed to several factors:

1. **Cost of Goods Sold (COGS)**: The company's Gross Margin was 62.44%, which indicates that a significant portion of the revenue is being consumed by COGS. This could be due to the high cost of manufacturing or sourcing of the drugs.
2. **Operating Expenses**: The company's Operating Margin was 1.73%, which is quite low. This suggests that the operating expenses are eating up a large part of the revenue. Increased operating expenses can squeeze profit margins, especially if revenue does not increase at the same rate.
3. **Net Margin**: The Net Margin was 2.47%. A lower net margin indicates that the company is retaining less profit for each dollar of revenue after all expenses, including taxes, have been deducted.

In conclusion, Vertex's operating profit decline in Q2 2024 can be attributed to high Cost of Goods Sold, increased operating expenses and low net margin. These factors combined to reduce the company's profit margin, resulting in a decline in operating profit.

|code|Ticker|Name|Date|Operating Income|Total Revenue|Diluted EPS|market_code|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|VERX|VERX.O|Vertex|2023 Q3|-2615000|1.45027E8|-0.02|185|
|VERX|VERX.O|Vertex|2023 Q4|-6513000|1.54914E8||185|
|VERX|VERX.O|Vertex|2024 Q1|-1851000|1.56781E8|0.02|185|
|VERX|VERX.O|Vertex|2024 Q2|7364000|1.61104E8|0.03|185|

|code|Ticker|Name|Date|Gross Profit Margin|Operating Profit Margin|Net Profit Margin|market_code|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|VERX|VERX.O|Vertex|2024 Q1|61.0992|-1.1806277546386361|1.7119|185|
|VERX|VERX.O|Vertex|2024 Q2|62.4377|1.7342749736539944|2.4688|185|