Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. $VRTS Shares Purchased by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Virtus Investment Partners by 8.3%, bringing its total ownership to approximately 4.33% of the company, worth $51.7 million.
• Virtus Investment Partners announced a dividend increase to $2.40 per share, up from the previous $2.25, representing a 4.9% annual yield.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings exceeded analysts' expectations, reporting $6.25 earnings per share compared to the forecasted $6.17.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS - Free Report) by 8.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 299,961 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after purchasing an additional 23,081 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 4.33% of Virtus Investment Partners worth $51,701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 106,104 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $23,404,000 after acquiring an additional 9,793 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 1.1% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 94,674 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $16,318,000 after acquiring an additional 1,026 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 45,632 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $10,066,000 after acquiring an additional 795 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 3.4% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 39,629 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $6,830,000 after buying an additional 1,290 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,246 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $6,672,000 after buying an additional 1,876 shares in the last quarter. 80.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Virtus Investment Partners Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of VRTS stock traded down $1.8520 on Thursday, hitting $189.3480. The stock had a trading volume of 47,436 shares, compared to its average volume of 69,696. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 11.86 and a quick ratio of 11.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.20 and a beta of 1.41. Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. has a 1 year low of $142.18 and a 1 year high of $252.82. The company's 50 day moving average price is $193.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $178.42.

Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The closed-end fund reported $6.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.17 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $210.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $191.90 million. Virtus Investment Partners had a return on equity of 21.56% and a net margin of 13.42%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.53 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. will post 27.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Virtus Investment Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a $2.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $9.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.1%. This is a boost from Virtus Investment Partners's previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. Virtus Investment Partners's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Virtus Investment Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Morgan Stanley set a $171.00 target price on Virtus Investment Partners and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Virtus Investment Partners from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Virtus Investment Partners has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $188.25.

About Virtus Investment Partners

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to individual and institutional clients. It launches separate client focused equity and fixed income portfolios. The firm launches equity, fixed income, and balanced mutual funds for its clients.