Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) Shares Down 7.5% – Time to Sell?

Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX)’s stock price fell 7.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $46.68 and last traded at $46.76. 561,098 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 32% from the average session volume of 829,390 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.54.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on VERX. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Vertex from $42.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Vertex from $43.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Raymond James reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Vertex from $50.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Vertex from $42.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.36.

Vertex Stock Down 10.9 %

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $54.76 and its 200-day moving average is $46.28. The firm has a market cap of $7.02 billion, a PE ratio of 248.22, a P/E/G ratio of 8.49 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Insider Transactions at Vertex

In related news, insider Jeffrey Westphal sold 575,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.01, for a total value of $30,480,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,895 shares in the company, valued at approximately $418,513.95. This represents a 98.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Bryan T.R. Rowland sold 3,020 shares of Vertex stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.08, for a total transaction of $166,341.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 952,825 shares of company stock worth $51,112,003 over the last quarter. 44.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Vertex during the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,693,000. Neuberger Berman Group LLC boosted its stake in Vertex by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 3,527,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,198,000 after acquiring an additional 53,829 shares during the last quarter. F M Investments LLC bought a new position in Vertex during the 4th quarter valued at $202,000. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Vertex by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 561,161 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,937,000 after purchasing an additional 22,340 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex in the fourth quarter worth about $595,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.32% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Company Profile

Vertex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides enterprise tax technology solutions for retail trade, wholesale trade, and manufacturing industries in the United States and internationally. The company offers tax determination; compliance and reporting, including workflow management tools, role-based security, and event logging; tax data management; document management; analytics and insights; pre-built integration that includes mapping data fields, and business logic and configurations; industry-specific solutions; and technology specific solutions, such as chain flow accelerator and SAP-specific tools.