Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) Hits New 52-Week High at $22.80

Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $22.80 and last traded at $22.30, with a volume of 433800 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.19.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on VIRT. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Virtu Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Citigroup increased their target price on Virtu Financial from $21.00 to $22.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Virtu Financial from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Virtu Financial from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Virtu Financial has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.75.

Virtu Financial Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $19.35 and a 200 day moving average of $18.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.13). Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 16.94% and a net margin of 6.22%. The company had revenue of $535.98 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $272.96 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 1.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.28%. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Douglas A. Cifu acquired 50,000 shares of Virtu Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $16.21 per share, with a total value of $810,500.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 584,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,468,779.72. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 44.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 7.6% in the third quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 8,347,311 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $144,158,000 after acquiring an additional 588,749 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Virtu Financial by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,868,222 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,851,000 after purchasing an additional 92,279 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,123,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,760,000 after purchasing an additional 86,313 shares in the last quarter. Gratus Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Gratus Capital LLC now owns 832,529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,867,000 after buying an additional 46,719 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 1.7% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 817,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,111,000 after buying an additional 13,443 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.