Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) Shares Down 6.3% – Should You Sell?

Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) was down 6.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $12.84 and last traded at $12.9050. Approximately 94,880 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 1,910,310 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.77.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Vertex from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Vertex from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Vertex in a research note on Monday, June 29th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Vertex from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.43.

Vertex Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $2.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 642.47 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $12.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $203.97 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $202.21 million. Vertex had a return on equity of 29.00% and a net margin of 0.45%.Vertex’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.15 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Vertex by 25.7% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 395 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Vertex by 9.9% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $207,000 after acquiring an additional 753 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Vertex by 1.4% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 83,056 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,933,000 after acquiring an additional 1,121 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Vertex by 2.2% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 63,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,226,000 after acquiring an additional 1,383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its stake in shares of Vertex by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 16,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. 70.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Vertex

Vertex Energy, Inc (NASDAQ: VERX) is a specialty refiner and marketer of transportation fuels and petrochemical feedstocks in the United States. The company collects and processes a variety of waste petroleum products, including used motor oil and industrial lubricants, which it converts into ultra-low-sulfur diesel, asphalt, and other refined products. By leveraging proprietary re-refining technologies and strategic feedstock sourcing, Vertex Energy aims to deliver cost-effective, lower-carbon fuel solutions to wholesale and retail customers across the country.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Vertex operates a network of refining and blending facilities in key regions, including the Central, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic markets.