Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) hit a new 52-week low on Monday . The stock traded as low as $174.81 and last traded at $174.45, with a volume of 14718 shares. The stock had previously closed at $181.64.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Virtus Investment Partners from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Barclays dropped their price target on Virtus Investment Partners from $221.00 to $200.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $274.00 to $258.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Virtus Investment Partners presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $225.75.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Down 1.7 %

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $196.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $212.84. The company has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.23 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a current ratio of 11.86, a quick ratio of 11.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Virtus Investment Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.21%. Virtus Investment Partners’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.25%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 388.5% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 127 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 170.3% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Virtus Investment Partners during the fourth quarter worth about $75,000. KBC Group NV grew its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 61.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 395 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd increased its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 57.2% in the third quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 610 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $128,000 after buying an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.52% of the company’s stock.

Virtus Investment Partners Company Profile

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to individual and institutional clients. It launches separate client focused equity and fixed income portfolios. The firm launches equity, fixed income, and balanced mutual funds for its clients.