Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Raises Stake in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT - Free Report) by 8.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 438,428 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 33,340 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned 0.28% of Virtu Financial worth $15,643,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of VIRT. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Virtu Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,081,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 391,548 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,970,000 after purchasing an additional 5,371 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Virtu Financial by 60.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,486 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,691,000 after buying an additional 20,843 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Virtu Financial by 48.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 358,065 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,907,000 after buying an additional 117,062 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in Virtu Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $954,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.78% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Virtu Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $26.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, 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 research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Virtu Financial currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $32.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Brett Fairclough sold 72,967 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.84, for a total value of $2,688,104.28. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 90,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,343,193.16. This represents a 44.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 value of $1,271,940.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 157,703 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,899,669.23. The trade was a 17.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 140,967 shares of company stock worth $5,213,964. Company insiders own 46.70% of the company's stock.

Virtu Financial Trading Up 1.7 %

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

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

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

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

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.