Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) Receives $31.36 Consensus PT from Analysts

Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $31.36.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th.

Virtu Financial Price Performance

Virtu Financial stock opened at $38.12 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $37.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.43. Virtu Financial has a 12-month low of $20.15 and a 12-month high of $41.38. The stock has a market cap of $5.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.84, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.57.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.32. Virtu Financial had a net margin of 9.61% and a return on equity of 27.39%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Virtu Financial will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Virtu Financial’s payout ratio is 32.32%.

Insider Activity at Virtu Financial

In other news, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 34,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.41, for a total value of $1,271,940.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 157,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,899,669.23. This trade represents a 17.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Brett Fairclough sold 72,967 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.84, for a total value of $2,688,104.28. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 90,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,343,193.16. The trade was a 44.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 140,967 shares of company stock worth $5,213,964. Corporate insiders own 46.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Virtu Financial

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in Virtu Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $954,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 26.3% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $594,000 after purchasing an additional 3,468 shares during the last quarter. Brucke Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Virtu Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $240,000. Virtue Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 28,967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,034,000 after purchasing an additional 1,849 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 199,490 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,118,000 after purchasing an additional 21,503 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.78% of the company’s stock.

Virtu Financial Company Profile

Virtu Financial, Inc operates as a financial services company in the United States, Asia Pacific, Canada, EMEA, Ireland, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Market Making and Execution Services. Its product includes offerings in execution, liquidity sourcing, analytics and broker-neutral, capital markets, and multi-dealer platforms in workflow technology.