Mackenzie Financial Corp Grows Stock Holdings in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS)

Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS - Free Report) by 174.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,511 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after buying an additional 2,233 shares during the quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp owned approximately 0.05% of Virtus Investment Partners worth $774,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 17,329 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $3,822,000 after buying an additional 913 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 23.0% during the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 2,831 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $624,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 4,057 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $895,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 7,700 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $1,698,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 17.4% in the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,700 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $596,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.52% of the company's stock.

Virtus Investment Partners Price Performance

Shares of VRTS stock traded up $1.64 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $170.05. The company had a trading volume of 82,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 41,471. Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. has a 12-month low of $142.18 and a 12-month high of $252.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 11.86 and a current ratio of 11.86. The company has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.06 and a beta of 1.47. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $162.30 and a 200-day moving average of $191.92.

Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The closed-end fund reported $5.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.68 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $217.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $201.99 million. Virtus Investment Partners had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 21.56%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.41 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. will post 27.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Virtus Investment Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.29%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. Virtus Investment Partners's dividend payout ratio is presently 53.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VRTS. Wall Street Zen raised Virtus Investment Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $216.00 to $211.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $220.00 to $158.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Barclays set a $150.00 target price on shares of Virtus Investment Partners and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $167.75.

About Virtus Investment Partners

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.