SAN FRANCISCO — Every presentation is the corporate equivalent of the State of the Union address for executives at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference.

Every year marks a turning point, a pivotal juncture, a chance to seize opportunities and execute on plans. And this year is no different for the dozens of Massachusetts life sciences companies and health care organizations that are taking to the podium this week at the industry’s premier investment powwow.

But presenters are keenly aware that when they make promises, investors will be keeping a close eye on whether they deliver.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s chief executive, Jeffrey M. Leiden, trumpeted “the transformational nature of the science’’ that has fueled the Boston biotech’s launch of Kalydeco and Orkambi, two cystic fibrosis drugs capable of treating half the US patients with the obstructive lung disease. “As we enter 2016, we are truly a different company than we were four years ago,’’ he said.

While Leiden projected sales of the older Kalydeco would climb from $630 million in 2015 to between $670 million and $690 million this year, he stopped short of offering 2016 revenue guidance for Orkambi, which was approved by US regulators last year and is seen as key to Vertex’s ability to generate a profit this year. Orkambi rang up about $350 million in sales in the second half of last year.

“It’s simply too early in the launch,’’ Leiden told investors. “When we get more [sales] data, we’ll provide guidance for Orkambi, as well.’’

Vertex shares tumbled nearly 7 percent Monday, the day of Vertex’s presentation here, part of a larger weeklong pullback in biotech shares.

The shares closed at $103.64 Tuesday, down 0.3 percent.

Leiden got emotional toward the end of his presentation when he outlined the pipeline of Vertex drug programs aimed at treating all of the estimated 75,000 people worldwide who suffer from cystic fibrosis as well as other diseases, ranging from pain and respiratory conditions to spinal cord injuries and influenza.

After showing investors a slide of healthy patients taking Vertex medicines, he said, “This is what motivates us to come to work every day.’’

But investors can be expected to focus more on the hard numbers.

“My gut feeling is presenting strong data is important in a volatile market,’’ said Steve Dickman, CEO at CBT Advisors, a life sciences consulting firm in Cambridge, Mass. “Vertex becoming profitable, Alnylam getting its first product approved, Biogen reporting good data on its Alzheimer’s drug program . . . these are the kind of milestones that will stand out in the broader environment.’’

John Maraganore, chief executive of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc., said his Cambridge biotech will have 11 experimental drugs in clinical trials by the end of the year and expects “readouts’’ — reports of clinical study findings — for 10. The company, a leader in the emerging gene-silencing field known as RNA interference, is aiming to submit its first new drug application next year for a drug candidate that stops nerve damage in patients with a rare neurodegenerative disease.

“This marks the beginning of our transformation from a research company to a multiproduct commercial company,’’ he said on Monday.

Alnylam’s stock closed up 2.7 percent at $81.83 Tuesday, after falling 4.9 percent on Monday.

Biotech executives weren’t the only ones making promises and giving updates at the J.P. Morgan conference. Hundreds of bond investors crowded into a conference room in a separate part of the Westin St. Francis Hotel for a “nonprofit track’’ of presentations by health care organizations such as Boston’s Partners HealthCare, which operates Massachusetts General and Brigham and Women’s hospitals.

Partners is floating $335 million in bonds to help finance its planned Somerville headquarters, a new complex at Brigham and Women’s, and installation of the Epic data-management system across the organizaiton. Chief financial officer Peter Markell directed bond buyers to a suite on the 31st floor where they could pick up bond offering documents.

“2016 is a key year for us in terms of execution,’’ Markell said, noting that Partners’ health insurance arm, Neighborhood Health Plan, rebounded last year after suffering steep losses from the introduction of a hepatitis C drug. “We think we’re well positioned for the future. We have all the pieces to do what we have to do.’’

Robert Weisman can be reached at robert.weisman@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeRobW.