Algert Global LLC Buys 83,099 Shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT)

Algert Global LLC boosted its stake in shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) by 99.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 166,875 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 83,099 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC owned about 0.11% of Virtu Financial worth $5,954,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Virtu Financial by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 391,548 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,970,000 after buying an additional 5,371 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in Virtu Financial by 60.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,691,000 after acquiring an additional 20,843 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Virtu Financial by 48.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 358,065 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,907,000 after acquiring an additional 117,062 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in Virtu Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $954,000. Finally, Moody Aldrich Partners LLC boosted its position in Virtu Financial by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 310,751 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,088,000 after purchasing an additional 55,102 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.78% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Brett Fairclough sold 72,967 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 90,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,343,193.16. The trade was a 44.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Douglas A. Cifu sold 178,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.57, for a total value of $6,877,802.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 408,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,770,000.19. This represents a 30.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 496,848 shares of company stock worth $18,995,338 over the last quarter. Insiders own 46.70% of the company’s stock.

Virtu Financial Stock Up 1.9 %

VIRT opened at $41.94 on Tuesday. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $21.55 and a fifty-two week high of $42.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market cap of $6.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.68. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $37.28 and its 200 day moving average is $36.52.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.31. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 27.39% and a net margin of 9.61%. The firm had revenue of $497.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $444.23 million. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 30.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.76 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Virtu Financial’s payout ratio is currently 27.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $56.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Virtu Financial from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Virtu Financial from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $40.00 price target (up previously from $38.00) on shares of Virtu Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.88.

Virtu Financial 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.