Bank of Nova Scotia Sells 58,486 Shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT)

Bank of Nova Scotia cut its position in shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT - Free Report) by 85.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,987 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 58,486 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Virtu Financial were worth $356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIRT. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Virtu Financial in the third quarter valued at $1,081,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 391,548 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $13,970,000 after acquiring an additional 5,371 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 60.2% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,486 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,691,000 after acquiring an additional 20,843 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 48.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 358,065 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,907,000 after acquiring an additional 117,062 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in Virtu Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $954,000. 45.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Virtu Financial Price Performance

Shares of VIRT traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $38.46. 1,170,164 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,192,250. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.95, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a 50-day moving average of $36.69 and a 200 day moving average of $35.93. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $20.44 and a one year high of $41.38.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.32. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 27.39% and a net margin of 9.61%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Virtu Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Virtu Financial's dividend payout ratio is 32.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VIRT. Morgan Stanley lowered Virtu Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $26.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Virtu Financial from $56.00 to $48.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $32.21.

Insider Transactions at Virtu Financial

In other Virtu Financial news, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 34,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.41, for a total transaction of $1,271,940.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 157,703 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,899,669.23. The trade was a 17.74 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Brett Fairclough sold 72,967 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.84, for a total value of $2,688,104.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 90,749 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,343,193.16. The trade was a 44.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 140,967 shares of company stock valued at $5,213,964 in the last ninety days. 46.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Virtu Financial Company Profile

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.