Virtu Financial, Inc. $VIRT Shares Bought by Clark Capital Management Group Inc.

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management raised its stake in Virtu by 32.2% to 275,978 shares (about $9.8M), while institutional investors collectively own roughly 45.78% of the company.
• Virtu posted a strong quarterly beat with $1.85 EPS vs. $1.12 expected and revenue of $969.9M vs. $513.5M expected, delivering a 12.9% net margin and 48.35% return on equity.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 (annualized $0.96, ~2.5% yield) and insiders sold a combined 270,000 shares (~$10.46M) over the last quarter, leaving insiders with about 46.7% ownership.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VIRT - Free Report) by 32.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 275,978 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 67,230 shares during the quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. owned 0.18% of Virtu Financial worth $9,797,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VIRT. Summit Global Investments acquired a new stake in Virtu Financial in the third quarter valued at $1,109,000. Pullen Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 842.9% in the third quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 61,154 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,171,000 after buying an additional 54,668 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd raised its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 90,206 shares of the company's stock worth $3,202,000 after buying an additional 33,762 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 23.2% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,183,268 shares of the company's stock worth $40,373,000 after buying an additional 222,862 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 114,887.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 26,447 shares of the company's stock worth $939,000 after buying an additional 26,424 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.78% of the company's stock.

Virtu Financial Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of VIRT stock opened at $39.11 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.62, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $38.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.20. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $31.55 and a twelve month high of $45.77.

Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.73. The business had revenue of $969.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $513.51 million. Virtu Financial had a net margin of 12.90% and a return on equity of 48.35%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 16.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share.

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 27th. Virtu Financial's payout ratio is presently 18.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Virtu Financial

In other Virtu Financial news, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.61, for a total transaction of $1,128,300.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 174,561 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,565,239.21. This represents a 14.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Joseph Molluso sold 200,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.88, for a total value of $7,776,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 326,585 shares in the company, valued at $12,697,624.80. This trade represents a 37.98% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 270,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,458,644 over the last quarter. 46.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VIRT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Virtu Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Virtu Financial from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Virtu Financial from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $43.00.

Virtu Financial Profile

Virtu Financial, Inc is a technology-driven electronic trading firm and market maker that provides liquidity and price discovery across a wide range of financial instruments. Leveraging advanced analytics, high-performance computing and proprietary algorithms, Virtu operates in equities, fixed income, foreign exchange, commodities and derivative products. Its technology platform is designed to capture bid-ask spreads in real time, manage risk through automated controls and adapt to changing market conditions.

The company offers a suite of execution services and market-making solutions to institutional clients such as asset managers, banks, broker-dealers and hedge funds.

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