Citigroup Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Virtu Financial, Inc. $VIRT

Key Points

• Citigroup raised its stake in Virtu Financial by 41.8% in Q3 to 119,042 shares (about $4.23 million), representing roughly 0.08% of the company.
• Virtu posted a strong quarter, reporting $1.85 EPS vs. $1.12 expected and revenue of $969.9M vs. $513.5M expected, with revenue up 16.3% year-over-year and ROE of 32.08%.
• Insiders sold 270,000 shares (~$10.46M) in the past three months—including COO Joseph Molluso’s 200,000-share sale—while insiders collectively own about 47.2% of the stock.

Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT - Free Report) by 41.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 119,042 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 35,100 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned 0.08% of Virtu Financial worth $4,226,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 3,460.0% in the 3rd quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 712 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 692 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Virtu Financial by 258.3% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 713 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in Virtu Financial by 96.0% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 582 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Virtu Financial by 103.8% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 760 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 1,624.1% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 942 shares in the last quarter. 45.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Virtu Financial Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of VIRT stock opened at $41.01 on Thursday. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $31.55 and a fifty-two week high of $45.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.27 billion, a PE ratio of 11.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.49. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $37.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.31.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.73. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 32.08% and a net margin of 10.43%.The firm had revenue of $969.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $513.51 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.14 earnings per share. Virtu Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 16.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Virtu Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Virtu Financial

In other Virtu Financial news, COO Joseph Molluso sold 200,000 shares of Virtu Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.88, for a total transaction of $7,776,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 326,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,697,624.80. This trade represents a 37.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.61, for a total value of $1,128,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 174,561 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,565,239.21. This trade represents a 14.67% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 270,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,458,644. 47.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on VIRT shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Virtu Financial from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Virtu Financial has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $43.00.

Virtu Financial Profile

Virtu Financial, Inc NASDAQ: VIRT is a leading global electronic trading firm specializing in market making, liquidity provision and trade execution services across a broad range of asset classes. Leveraging advanced quantitative models and proprietary trading technology, Virtu provides continuous bid and ask quotes in equities, fixed income, foreign exchange, commodities and digital assets. The firm's infrastructure is designed to operate at high speeds and low latencies, enabling tight spreads and efficient price discovery for its clients.

In addition to its market-making activities, Virtu offers agency execution services, algorithmic trading strategies and transaction cost analysis tools.

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