AQR Capital Management LLC Has $9.03 Million Stake in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. $VRTS

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Virtus Investment Partners by 12.9%, now owning approximately 0.76% of the company after acquiring an additional 5,996 shares.
• Virtus Investment Partners has declared a quarterly dividend of $2.40, a rise from the previous $2.25, representing an annualized yield of 5.0%.
• Wall Street analysts have varying ratings on the stock, with a consensus target price of $188.25 and a mix of buy and sell recommendations.

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS - Free Report) by 12.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 52,391 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after purchasing an additional 5,996 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.76% of Virtus Investment Partners worth $9,030,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VRTS. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners in the first quarter valued at approximately $9,639,000. Gator Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Virtus Investment Partners by 190.7% in the 1st quarter. Gator Capital Management LLC now owns 60,810 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $10,481,000 after acquiring an additional 39,895 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 38.5% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 113,192 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $19,510,000 after purchasing an additional 31,454 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 8.3% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 299,961 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $51,701,000 after purchasing an additional 23,081 shares during the period. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Virtus Investment Partners during the first quarter worth $1,204,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.52% of the company's stock.

Virtus Investment Partners Trading Down 0.9%

NASDAQ VRTS traded down $1.73 on Tuesday, hitting $193.02. The company's stock had a trading volume of 47,282 shares, compared to its average volume of 70,561. The company has a quick ratio of 11.86, a current ratio of 11.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. has a 1-year low of $142.18 and a 1-year high of $252.82. The company's 50-day moving average is $198.16 and its 200 day moving average is $179.86. The firm has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a PE ratio of 11.42 and a beta of 1.44.

Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The closed-end fund reported $6.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.17 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $210.53 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $191.90 million. Virtus Investment Partners had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 21.56%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.53 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. will post 27.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Virtus Investment Partners Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be paid a $2.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. This is a positive change from Virtus Investment Partners's previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. Virtus Investment Partners's payout ratio is currently 46.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Virtus Investment Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Morgan Stanley set a $171.00 price objective on shares of Virtus Investment Partners and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $234.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $188.25.

About Virtus Investment Partners

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to individual and institutional clients. It launches separate client focused equity and fixed income portfolios. The firm launches equity, fixed income, and balanced mutual funds for its clients.