Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Sells 869,626 Shares of Vertex, Inc. $VERX

Key Points

• Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA sold 869,626 shares of Vertex (a 24.4% reduction), leaving it with 2,698,276 shares — about 1.69% of the company valued at roughly $53.9 million.
• Insiders have been buying: Jeffrey Westphal bought 150,000 shares at $12.53 and Director Eric C. Andersen bought 40,000 at $12.91, with insiders acquiring 437,740 shares (~$5.64M) in the last 90 days and now owning 43.25% of the company.
• Analysts show a consensus "Hold" with a $23.07 target; the stock trades near $11.45 (52-week range $10.59–$42.44), market cap ~$1.83B, high P/E (~286), and the latest quarter posted $0.17 EPS (in line) with revenue up 9.1% year-over-year.

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA reduced its holdings in shares of Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX - Free Report) by 24.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,698,276 shares of the company's stock after selling 869,626 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 1.69% of Vertex worth $53,885,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Vertex by 36.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 180,978 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,336,000 after buying an additional 48,181 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vertex by 25.7% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,933 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 395 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Vertex by 4.4% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 81,935 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,869,000 after buying an additional 3,461 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vertex by 92.1% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 8,105 shares of the company's stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 3,885 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Vertex by 10,910.6% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 13,543 shares of the company's stock valued at $479,000 after buying an additional 13,420 shares in the last quarter. 70.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex

In other Vertex news, insider Jeffrey Westphal purchased 150,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $12.53 per share, with a total value of $1,879,500.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 397,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,983,682.20. This trade represents a 60.55% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Eric C. Andersen purchased 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $12.91 per share, with a total value of $516,400.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 150,341 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,940,902.31. The trade was a 36.25% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have acquired a total of 437,740 shares of company stock valued at $5,636,339 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 43.25% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Vertex from $22.00 to $16.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley set a $20.00 target price on shares of Vertex in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $16.00 target price on shares of Vertex in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Citizens Jmp decreased their target price on shares of Vertex from $37.00 to $25.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, UBS Group set a $25.00 target price on shares of Vertex in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $23.07.

Vertex Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of Vertex stock opened at $11.45 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $13.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.26. Vertex, Inc. has a 1 year low of $10.59 and a 1 year high of $42.44. The company has a market capitalization of $1.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 286.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.17. Vertex had a return on equity of 24.70% and a net margin of 0.96%.The business had revenue of $194.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $194.33 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.15 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.38 EPS for the current year.

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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