Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $29.50.

VIRT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price objective on Virtu Financial from $32.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of Virtu Financial in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Virtu Financial from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Virtu Financial

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VIRT. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in Virtu Financial in the third quarter valued at $33,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Virtu Financial during the second quarter worth about $39,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 55.3% during the first quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 781 shares in the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Virtu Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Virtu Financial by 21.0% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,143 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.78% of the company’s stock.

Virtu Financial Price Performance

Shares of VIRT stock opened at $36.90 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $32.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.01. Virtu Financial has a 12 month low of $16.02 and a 12 month high of $37.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The company has a market capitalization of $5.71 billion, a PE ratio of 18.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.38.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $388.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $379.18 million. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 23.22% and a net margin of 7.29%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 30.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.40 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Virtu Financial will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Virtu Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.60%. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.24%.

About Virtu Financial

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.