Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) Shares Purchased by Navellier & Associates Inc.

Key Points

• Navellier & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Virtu Financial by 27.5%, totaling 30,132 shares valued at approximately $1.26 million as of the most recent quarter.
• Insider trading activity included CEO Douglas A. Cifu selling 177,561 shares and Director John Nixon selling 6,965 shares, reflecting significant decreases in their ownership stakes.
• Wall Street analysts have provided mixed ratings for Virtu Financial, with an average consensus price target of $39.13 and various estimates predicting its future earnings performance.

Navellier & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT - Free Report) by 27.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 30,132 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,495 shares during the quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc.'s holdings in Virtu Financial were worth $1,264,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Virtu Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $344,000. Natixis Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Virtu Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $401,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Virtu Financial by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 319,763 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,409,000 after buying an additional 14,975 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in Virtu Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,242,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in Virtu Financial by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 73,342 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,617,000 after buying an additional 14,490 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.78% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on VIRT shares. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Virtu Financial from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Bank of America cut shares of Virtu Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $43.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Virtu Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.13.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John Nixon sold 6,965 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.82, for a total transaction of $298,241.30. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 33,923 shares in the company, valued at $1,452,582.86. This trade represents a 17.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 47.20% of the company's stock.

Virtu Financial Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of VIRT traded down $0.26 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $43.79. The company had a trading volume of 416,707 shares, compared to its average volume of 950,496. The stock has a market cap of $6.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.65, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.70. The company's 50 day moving average price is $42.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.50 and a 52 week high of $45.77.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.64. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 32.08% and a net margin of 10.43%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.83 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current year.

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Virtu Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.75%.

Virtu Financial Profile

Virtu Financial, Inc operates as a financial services company in the United States, Asia Pacific, Canada, EMEA, Ireland, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Market Making and Execution Services. Its product includes offerings in execution, liquidity sourcing, analytics and broker-neutral, capital markets, and multi-dealer platforms in workflow technology.