Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) Stock Position Lifted by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX - Free Report) by 26.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,129,099 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 439,054 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 1.37% of Vertex worth $113,587,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Scalar Gauge Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex during the fourth quarter worth about $11,789,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Vertex by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 60,571 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,231,000 after purchasing an additional 1,445 shares in the last quarter. Axiom Investors LLC DE lifted its stake in shares of Vertex by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Axiom Investors LLC DE now owns 503,578 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,866,000 after purchasing an additional 28,568 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Vertex by 707.5% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 446,951 shares of the company's stock worth $23,845,000 after buying an additional 391,601 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its position in Vertex by 41.2% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 9,830 shares of the company's stock worth $524,000 after buying an additional 2,868 shares during the period. 70.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Vertex Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of Vertex stock traded up $0.39 on Monday, hitting $35.37. 563,343 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,003,210. Vertex, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.22 and a 52-week high of $60.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market cap of $5.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 197.44, a PEG ratio of 6.66 and a beta of 0.80. The firm's 50-day moving average is $42.32 and its 200 day moving average is $46.51.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $178.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $176.90 million. Vertex had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 24.92%. Equities analysts anticipate that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on VERX shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Vertex from $62.00 to $48.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Raymond James reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Vertex in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Vertex from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Vertex in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Vertex from $46.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.82.

Insider Transactions at Vertex

In related news, General Counsel Bryan T.R. Rowland sold 43,228 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.98, for a total transaction of $1,555,343.44. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 132 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,749.36. This represents a 99.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Item Second Irr. Trust Fbo Kyl sold 53,843 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.48, for a total transaction of $3,041,052.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,229,257 shares in the company, valued at $69,428,435.36. This represents a 4.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 44.58% of the company's stock.

Vertex Profile

Vertex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides enterprise tax technology solutions for retail trade, wholesale trade, and manufacturing industries in the United States and internationally. The company offers tax determination; compliance and reporting, including workflow management tools, role-based security, and event logging; tax data management; document management; analytics and insights; pre-built integration that includes mapping data fields, and business logic and configurations; industry-specific solutions; and technology specific solutions, such as chain flow accelerator and SAP-specific tools.