Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) Shares Sold by WCM Investment Management LLC

WCM Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS - Free Report) by 6.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,178 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after selling 6,749 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC owned 1.47% of Virtus Investment Partners worth $17,702,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 35.9% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,957 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $510,000 after purchasing an additional 781 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 11.6% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 5,376 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $931,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,204,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 10.6% in the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 5,640 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $972,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 8,517.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,894 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 6,814 shares during the period. 80.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Virtus Investment Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $220.00 to $158.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $216.00 to $211.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays set a $150.00 price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $171.00 price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $172.50.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Down 0.8%

VRTS stock traded down $1.61 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $199.10. 96,027 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 50,259. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 11.86 and a current ratio of 11.86. Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. has a 1-year low of $142.18 and a 1-year high of $252.82. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $173.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $182.03. The company has a market cap of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.78 and a beta of 1.44.

Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The closed-end fund reported $5.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.68 by $0.05. Virtus Investment Partners had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 21.56%. The company had revenue of $217.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $201.99 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.41 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. will post 27.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Virtus Investment Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $2.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.52%. Virtus Investment Partners's payout ratio is currently 53.41%.

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.