O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT - Free Report) by 35.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 57,677 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 32,242 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC's holdings in Virtu Financial were worth $2,058,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Virtu Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Virtu Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Virtu Financial by 172.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 870 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 551 shares during the period. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new position in shares of Virtu Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Virtu Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 45.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Virtu Financial Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of Virtu Financial stock traded down $0.21 on Thursday, reaching $35.62. The company had a trading volume of 180,013 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,176,978. The firm has a market cap of $5.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $36.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $35.63. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.15 and a 1 year high of $41.38.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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, research analysts predict that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Virtu Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders 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 yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Virtu Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on VIRT shares. Morgan Stanley downgraded Virtu Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $26.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Virtu Financial from $56.00 to $48.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. One investment 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, Virtu Financial presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $32.21.

Insider Transactions at Virtu Financial

In related news, COO Brett Fairclough sold 72,967 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.84, for a total transaction of $2,688,104.28. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 90,749 shares in the company, valued at $3,343,193.16. The trade was a 44.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 34,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 157,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,899,669.23. This trade represents a 17.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 140,967 shares of company stock valued at $5,213,964. Corporate insiders own 46.70% of the company's stock.

Virtu Financial 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.