HighTower Advisors LLC Buys 26,283 Shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. $VIRT

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC has increased its stake in Virtu Financial, Inc. by 24.3%, now owning 134,582 shares worth approximately $5.13 million.
• Virtu Financial recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, equating to an annual yield of 2.3%.
• Wall Street analysts generally maintain a consensus rating of "Hold" for Virtu Financial, with a price target averaging $39.75.

HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT - Free Report) by 24.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 134,582 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 26,283 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Virtu Financial worth $5,130,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new stake in Virtu Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Virtu Financial in the first quarter worth $54,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 26.0% during the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new stake in Virtu Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $203,000. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Virtu Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $210,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.78% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on VIRT. Wall Street Zen downgraded Virtu Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $45.00 price target (up previously from $40.00) on shares of Virtu Financial in a report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.75.

Insider Activity at Virtu Financial

In other news, COO Brett Fairclough sold 90,701 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.40, for a total value of $3,845,722.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 47.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Virtu Financial Stock Performance

VIRT stock traded up $0.4520 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $42.0320. 740,538 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 945,013. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.43 billion, a PE ratio of 12.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.69. The business has a 50-day moving average of $43.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $40.13. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $29.71 and a 52 week high of $45.77. 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 Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Virtu Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.82%.

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.