Jennison Associates LLC Buys 172,692 Shares of Vertex, Inc. $VERX

Key Points

• Jennison Associates raised its stake in Vertex by 21.1%, buying 172,692 shares to own 991,820 shares (about 0.62% of the company) valued at roughly $19.8 million.
• Significant insider buying: Director Eric C. Andersen and insider Jeffrey Westphal bought 40,000 and 150,000 shares respectively, part of 437,740 insider-purchased shares in the last three months, and insiders now own 43.25% of the stock.
• Recent results and valuation: Vertex reported Q EPS of $0.17 (in line with estimates) and revenue of $194.7M (+9.1% YoY); the company has a $2.11B market cap and a P/E of 329.8, with analysts on average rating the stock a "Hold" and a $20.71 consensus target.

Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX - Free Report) by 21.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 991,820 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 172,692 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 0.62% of Vertex worth $19,807,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Vertex by 25.7% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,933 shares of the company's stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 395 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake in Vertex by 0.4% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 137,913 shares of the company's stock worth $3,456,000 after purchasing an additional 564 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Vertex by 5.5% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,538 shares of the company's stock worth $296,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Vertex by 9.9% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,354 shares of the company's stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 753 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in Vertex by 10.4% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 10,732 shares of the company's stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 1,014 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.32% of the company's stock.

Vertex Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex stock opened at $13.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market cap of $2.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 329.83 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.25. Vertex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $10.59 and a fifty-two week high of $42.44.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.17. The business had revenue of $194.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.33 million. Vertex had a net margin of 0.96% and a return on equity of 24.70%. Vertex's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.15 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Eric C. Andersen purchased 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $12.91 per share, with a total value of $516,400.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 150,341 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,940,902.31. This trade represents a 36.25% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffrey Westphal purchased 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $12.53 per share, with a total value of $1,879,500.00. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 397,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,983,682.20. This represents a 60.55% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders purchased 437,740 shares of company stock valued at $5,636,339. 43.25% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on VERX. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Vertex from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $16.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $18.00 price target on shares of Vertex in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Vertex from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Vertex from $30.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $13.00 price objective on shares of Vertex in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.71.

About Vertex

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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