Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Purchases 65,971 Shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. $VIRT

Key Points

• Crossmark Global Holdings increased its stake in Virtu Financial by 1,345.5% in Q3, buying 65,971 shares to hold 70,874 shares worth about $2.52 million, while hedge funds and other institutions now own roughly 45.78% of the company.
• Company insiders have been net sellers recently — executives sold 270,000 shares (~$10.46 million) over the last 90 days (including COO Joseph Molluso's 200,000-share sale), leaving insiders with about 47.20% ownership.
• Virtu reported a strong quarterly beat with $1.85 EPS vs. $1.12 expected and revenue of $969.9M vs. $513.5M expected, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 (annualized yield ~2.3%).

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT - Free Report) by 1,345.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 70,874 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 65,971 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Virtu Financial were worth $2,516,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VIRT. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Virtu Financial by 2.6% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,785,090 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $63,374,000 after acquiring an additional 44,976 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 10.1% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 126,734 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,499,000 after purchasing an additional 11,659 shares during the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co boosted its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 240.5% in the 3rd quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 63,836 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,266,000 after purchasing an additional 45,087 shares in the last quarter. Ibex Wealth Advisors grew its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Ibex Wealth Advisors now owns 196,421 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,973,000 after buying an additional 2,957 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd grew its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 595.9% in the third quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 4,092 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $145,000 after acquiring an additional 3,504 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Activity at Virtu Financial

In other Virtu Financial news, COO Joseph Molluso sold 200,000 shares of the business's 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 sale, the chief operating officer owned 326,585 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,697,624.80. The trade was a 37.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 28,370 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.94, for a total value of $1,104,727.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 116,191 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,524,477.54. The trade was a 19.62% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 270,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,458,644 over the last 90 days. 47.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Virtu Financial Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:VIRT opened at $41.00 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.34 billion, a PE ratio of 11.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.61. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $31.55 and a 12 month high of $45.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $37.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.30.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $969.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $513.51 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.14 earnings per share. Virtu Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 16.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast 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. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 (DPR) is presently 18.71%.

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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