Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) Sets New 12-Month High at $31.75

Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $31.75 and last traded at $31.65, with a volume of 278260 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $31.13.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VIRT. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $25.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com raised Virtu Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Virtu Financial from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Virtu Financial from $18.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Virtu Financial from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.36.

Virtu Financial Trading Down 1.8 %

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $28.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a market cap of $4.80 billion, a PE ratio of 21.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 0.37.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.23. Virtu Financial had a net margin of 7.59% and a return on equity of 22.74%. The company had revenue of $385.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $331.92 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.29 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 38.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current year.

Virtu Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Virtu Financial news, Director Virginia Gambale sold 5,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.30, for a total transaction of $147,420.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 24,122 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $658,530.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 46.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Virtu Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in Virtu Financial by 21.0% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,143 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 372 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 22.2% in the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 487 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in Virtu Financial by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 19,421 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $436,000 after purchasing an additional 587 shares during the last quarter. First Bank & Trust raised its position in Virtu Financial by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 19,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 734 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its stake in Virtu Financial by 79.9% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 746 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.