** Shares of drugmaker Vertex Pharmaceuticals VRTX.O rise 1.1% to $463.96 premarket

** Brokerage Maxim Group upgrades Vertex to 'buy' from 'hold'; raises price target to $575 from no prior target, citing positive povetacicept data

** Co says interim late-stage data showed experimental kidney disease drug povetacicept met its main goal and all secondary goals in IgA nephropathy, a kidney disease that can lead to kidney failure

** Vertex plans to complete a rolling U.S. approval filing by end-March, with the brokerage expecting potential approval in late 2026 or early 2027

** Maxim says povetacicept could become a blockbuster and help diversify revenue beyond Vertex's cystic fibrosis drugs

** Shares up ~12% in 2025