Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) Stock Bumped Up to “Strong-Buy” by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Roth Capital set a $345.00 target price on Vertiv in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Vertiv from $331.00 to $323.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $330.00 price target on Vertiv in a research report on Friday, October 16th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $370.00 price target on shares of Vertiv in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Vertiv from $368.00 to $376.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $337.78.

Vertiv Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:VRT opened at $182.49 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.11, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 2.11. Vertiv has a 1-year low of $147.82 and a 1-year high of $379.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.39. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $236.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $269.74.

Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.39. Vertiv had a return on equity of 53.31% and a net margin of 15.99%. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.24 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 61.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Vertiv will post 7.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vertiv Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Monday, September 14th were given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 14th. Vertiv’s payout ratio is presently 4.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Edward Monser sold 15,287 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.82, for a total transaction of $3,880,146.34. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 16,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,188,030. The trade was a 48.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertiv

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VRT. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Vertiv by 4.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,531,530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,535,087,000 after purchasing an additional 704,970 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Vertiv by 14.1% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,794,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,270,428,000 after purchasing an additional 468,380 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in Vertiv by 1.9% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,709,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $678,890,000 after purchasing an additional 51,328 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Vertiv by 33.7% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,410,642 shares of the company’s stock worth $604,059,000 after purchasing an additional 608,176 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Vertiv by 1.1% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,138,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $716,169,000 after purchasing an additional 23,444 shares during the period. 89.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertiv News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Vertiv this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vertiv’s recent quarter reportedly beat revenue estimates by about $550 million, delivered record results and came with raised guidance. One Wall Street team argues the selloff may overstate the threat because orders have not yet been affected. Vertiv Beat by $550 Million Last Week. It Has Lost 23% Since Tuesday’s Vote Vertiv Suffered a Near 40% Drop Over 6 Months
• Positive Sentiment: A report says Vertiv has locked in three years of AI power-chip supply. Securing supply could help the company serve continued demand for data-center infrastructure. Vertiv Holdings Co Locked In Three Years Of AI Power Chip Supply
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks describes VRT as a strong growth stock, but its article highlights a research-service stock-rating framework rather than a new company development. Here’s Why Vertiv Holdings Co. Is a Strong Growth Stock
• Negative Sentiment: The main near-term pressure is concern that the election outcome and potential data-center permitting limits, including a reported Texas permit freeze, could restrain AI infrastructure spending. The reports indicate this is a prospective risk; they do not establish that Vertiv’s orders have declined. Steve Weiss Says the Midterms Just Put a Lid on AI Spending
• Negative Sentiment: Broader weakness in AI-related stocks and ETFs may be adding to pressure on VRT, while the article notes the shares have lost about 23% since Tuesday’s vote. Some of the Year’s Hottest AI ETFs Are in Big Trouble Today

Vertiv Company Profile

Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE: VRT) designs, manufactures and services critical digital infrastructure used by data centers, communications networks and commercial and industrial facilities. Its offerings help customers maintain reliable power, cooling and operating conditions for technology systems.

The company’s products and solutions include uninterruptible power supplies, power distribution equipment, thermal management systems, racks, integrated modular infrastructure, and monitoring and control software.