Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) Shares Purchased by UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT - Free Report) by 12.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 199,490 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 21,503 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 0.13% of Virtu Financial worth $7,118,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Virtu Financial by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,794 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,884 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 1,020 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Virtu Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its position in Virtu Financial by 227.9% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 112,194 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,003,000 after purchasing an additional 77,980 shares during the period. Finally, Precision Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Virtu Financial during the 4th quarter worth $612,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.78% of the company's stock.

Virtu Financial Stock Up 0.2%

NASDAQ VIRT traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $40.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 931,640 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,180,126. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $39.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.81. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.59 and a twelve month high of $44.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.76, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.68.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $497.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $444.23 million. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 27.39% and a net margin of 9.61%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 30.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.76 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Virtu Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. Virtu Financial's payout ratio is presently 27.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on VIRT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Virtu Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $40.00 price objective (up from $38.00) on shares of Virtu Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded shares of Virtu Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $43.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Virtu Financial presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $37.25.

Insider Activity at Virtu Financial

In related news, Director John Nixon sold 6,965 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 33,923 shares in the company, valued at $1,452,582.86. This represents a 17.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Douglas A. Cifu sold 178,320 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.57, for a total value of $6,877,802.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 408,867 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,770,000.19. This trade represents a 30.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 362,846 shares of company stock valued at $14,079,615 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 47.20% of the company's stock.

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.