Janus Henderson Group PLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Vertex, Inc. $VERX

Key Points

• Janus Henderson Group cut its Vertex stake by 95.2% in the first quarter, selling 739,365 shares and retaining 37,027 shares valued at approximately $440,000.
• Other institutional investors increased their positions, and hedge funds and institutional investors collectively own 70.32% of Vertex.
• Vertex exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $0.20 in EPS and $203.97 million in revenue, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $17.43 price target.

Janus Henderson Group PLC lessened its stake in Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX - Free Report) by 95.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 37,027 shares of the company's stock after selling 739,365 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC's holdings in Vertex were worth $440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in shares of Vertex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,796,000. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Vertex by 9.2% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,728,504 shares of the company's stock valued at $67,640,000 after buying an additional 229,774 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Vertex by 76.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,161,501 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,584,000 after buying an additional 937,905 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Vertex by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,849,171 shares of the company's stock worth $36,928,000 after buying an additional 136,656 shares during the period. Finally, Park West Asset Management LLC grew its position in Vertex by 46.7% during the 4th quarter. Park West Asset Management LLC now owns 1,833,428 shares of the company's stock worth $36,614,000 after acquiring an additional 583,428 shares during the last quarter. 70.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Stock Up 1.7%

Vertex stock opened at $12.14 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of 607.30 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. Vertex, Inc. has a one year low of $10.21 and a one year high of $26.63. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $12.29 and a 200 day moving average of $13.21.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $203.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $202.21 million. Vertex had a return on equity of 29.00% and a net margin of 0.45%.Vertex's revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.15 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.54 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on VERX. Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Vertex from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $15.00 price target (down from $19.00) on shares of Vertex in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $14.00 target price on Vertex in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Vertex in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Vertex from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $17.43.

Vertex Company Profile

Vertex Energy, Inc NASDAQ: VERX is a specialty refiner and marketer of transportation fuels and petrochemical feedstocks in the United States. The company collects and processes a variety of waste petroleum products, including used motor oil and industrial lubricants, which it converts into ultra-low-sulfur diesel, asphalt, and other refined products. By leveraging proprietary re-refining technologies and strategic feedstock sourcing, Vertex Energy aims to deliver cost-effective, lower-carbon fuel solutions to wholesale and retail customers across the country.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Vertex operates a network of refining and blending facilities in key regions, including the Central, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic markets.

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