Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $44.58 and last traded at $43.48, with a volume of 112791 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $43.15.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $56.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $40.00 price objective (up 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 assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.88.

Virtu Financial Stock Performance

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 market capitalization of $6.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.68. The company’s fifty day moving average is $38.01 and its 200 day moving average is $36.91.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $497.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $444.23 million. Virtu Financial had a net margin of 9.61% and a return on equity of 27.39%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 30.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.76 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current 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 2.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.75%.

Insider Activity at Virtu Financial

In related news, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 34,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.88, for a total transaction of $1,253,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 191,703 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,070,006.64. This trade represents a 15.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Douglas A. Cifu sold 177,561 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.88, for a total transaction of $6,903,571.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 231,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,993,177.28. This trade represents a 43.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 423,881 shares of company stock valued at $16,307,234. Insiders own 47.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Virtu Financial

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Virtu Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Virtu Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in Virtu Financial by 243.0% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 782 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 554 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Virtu Financial by 172.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 551 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new position in Virtu Financial in the first quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors own 45.78% of the company’s stock.

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.