Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) Sees Large Volume Increase – Time to Buy?

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 93,576 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 117% from the previous session’s volume of 43,080 shares.The stock last traded at $175.77 and had previously closed at $177.25.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on VRTS shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Virtus Investment Partners from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Barclays set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Virtus Investment Partners and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Virtus Investment Partners from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $216.00 to $211.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $220.00 to $158.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Virtus Investment Partners has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $167.75.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 11.86, a quick ratio of 11.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.28 and a beta of 1.45. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $163.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $188.46.

Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The closed-end fund reported $5.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.68 by $0.05. Virtus Investment Partners had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 21.56%. The company had revenue of $217.93 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $201.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.41 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. will post 27.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Virtus Investment Partners Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. Virtus Investment Partners’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.41%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Virtus Investment Partners

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Virtus Investment Partners by 170.3% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 30.2% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 366 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners in the first quarter worth about $93,000. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in Virtus Investment Partners during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in Virtus Investment Partners during the first quarter valued at approximately $219,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.52% of the company’s stock.

Virtus Investment Partners Company Profile

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to individual and institutional clients. It launches separate client focused equity and fixed income portfolios. The firm launches equity, fixed income, and balanced mutual funds for its clients.