Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Buys 1,766 Shares of Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. $VRTS

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS - Free Report) by 59.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,753 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after acquiring an additional 1,766 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. owned 0.07% of Virtus Investment Partners worth $819,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VRTS. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners in the 4th quarter valued at $280,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 29,774 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $6,568,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 15,304 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $3,376,000 after purchasing an additional 1,185 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC increased its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 2,953 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $651,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in Virtus Investment Partners by 180.1% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 10,442 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $2,303,000 after purchasing an additional 6,714 shares during the last quarter. 80.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ VRTS traded up $0.33 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $192.60. 73,638 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 69,882. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 11.86 and a current ratio of 11.86. Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. has a one year low of $142.18 and a one year high of $252.82. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $192.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $178.38. The company has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a PE ratio of 11.40 and a beta of 1.41.

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

Virtus Investment Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $2.40 per share. This represents a $9.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. This is a boost from Virtus Investment Partners's previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. Virtus Investment Partners's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on VRTS shares. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Virtus Investment Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $171.00 price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. One investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $188.25.

Virtus Investment Partners Company Profile

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.