Graham Capital Management L.P. Raises Stock Holdings in Veritex Holdings, Inc. $VBTX

Key Points

• Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Veritex Holdings by 144.3% during the first quarter, owning 42,438 shares worth $1,060,000.
• Veritex recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 2.6%.
• The stock has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with a price target increase from $30 to as high as $39 from various research firms.

Graham Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in Veritex Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:VBTX - Free Report) by 144.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 42,438 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 25,068 shares during the quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. owned approximately 0.08% of Veritex worth $1,060,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Veritex by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 38,227 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,039,000 after acquiring an additional 3,923 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new stake in shares of Veritex in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $256,000. Algert Global LLC grew its stake in shares of Veritex by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 84,336 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,291,000 after buying an additional 4,951 shares in the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Veritex in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $494,000. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Veritex by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 312,703 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,493,000 after acquiring an additional 27,685 shares during the period. 88.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Veritex

In related news, EVP Angela Harper sold 47,716 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.37, for a total transaction of $1,544,566.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 59,683 shares in the company, valued at $1,931,938.71. This represents a 44.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John Sughrue sold 5,669 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total value of $181,408.00. Following the sale, the director owned 50,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,620,864. The trade was a 10.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 320,699 shares of company stock worth $10,361,627 over the last quarter. 4.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Veritex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VBTX traded down $0.18 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $34.21. 385,116 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 585,791. The company's 50 day moving average is $31.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.87 billion, a PE ratio of 16.29 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Veritex Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.37 and a 52 week high of $34.96.

Veritex (NASDAQ:VBTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.02. Veritex had a return on equity of 7.55% and a net margin of 14.83%.The company had revenue of $109.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $110.91 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Veritex Holdings, Inc. will post 2.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Veritex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 16th. Veritex's payout ratio is 41.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Veritex from $30.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. William Blair upgraded Veritex to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Veritex in a report on Monday, July 14th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $34.00 price target (up previously from $30.00) on shares of Veritex in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Veritex from $32.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $33.25.

Veritex Company Profile

Veritex Holdings, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Veritex Community Bank that provides various commercial banking products and services to small and medium-sized businesses, and professionals. The company accepts deposit products include demand, savings, money market, and time accounts. Its loan products include commercial real estate and general commercial, mortgage warehouse loans, residential real estate, construction and land, farmland, paycheck protection program, 1-4 family residential, agricultural, multi-family residential, and consumer loans, as well as purchased receivables financing.