Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) Stock Moved Down to “Hold” by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Thursday,Zacks reports.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on VIRT. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Virtu Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $39.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $51.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Virtu Financial in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $61.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.80.

Virtu Financial Stock Performance

Virtu Financial stock opened at $53.46 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $59.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.76. The company has a market capitalization of $8.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.88, a PEG ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 0.62. Virtu Financial has a fifty-two week low of $31.55 and a fifty-two week high of $68.76.

Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $984.69 million for the quarter. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 49.06% and a net margin of 13.50%.Virtu Financial has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.820-1.820 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Virtu Financial will post 6.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 1st. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.95%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John Nixon sold 9,094 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.13, for a total transaction of $546,822.22. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 30,902 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,858,137.26. This represents a 22.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Grano, Jr. sold 8,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $511,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 33,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,060,625.16. The trade was a 19.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 46.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Virtu Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VIRT. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Virtu Financial by 4.3% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $376,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its stake in Virtu Financial by 1.1% during the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 34,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 23,815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,419,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 24.5% in the 1st quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 2,224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,663 shares of the company’s stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 457 shares during the period. 45.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Virtu Financial Company Profile

Virtu Financial, Inc is a global financial services company that provides liquidity and execution services across the financial markets. Through its market-making operations, the company quotes buy and sell prices and facilitates trading in a range of securities, including equities, exchange-traded funds, options, futures, foreign exchange and fixed-income products.

Virtu also provides technology-enabled execution and workflow solutions to institutions, brokers, and other market participants.