Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) Hits New 1-Year Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Vertex, Inc. shares hit a new 12-month low at $27.03, down from a previous close of $33.07, with significant trading volume of 33,588 shares.
• Analyst ratings for Vertex show a consensus of "Moderate Buy", with a price target of $49.33 and a mix of buy and hold ratings from research firms.
• Insiders, including CEO David Destefano, sold a total of 3,520,170 shares recently, indicating a 99.74% decrease in one insider's position, raising concerns about insider confidence in the company's future.

Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday after DA Davidson downgraded the stock from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating. The company traded as low as $29.89 and last traded at $27.03, with a volume of 33588 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.07.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Vertex from $42.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Vertex in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $54.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Vertex from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. JMP Securities dropped their price objective on shares of Vertex from $61.00 to $50.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Vertex in a research note on Monday, June 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.69.

Insider Activity at Vertex

In related news, CAO Ryan J. Leib sold 5,755 shares of Vertex stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.00, for a total transaction of $218,690.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jeffrey Westphal sold 3,000,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.45, for a total transaction of $115,350,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,895 shares in the company, valued at $303,562.75. The trade was a 99.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,520,170 shares of company stock valued at $134,479,744. Company insiders own 43.25% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertex

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vertex by 28.4% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 54,115 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,887,000 after purchasing an additional 11,966 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Vertex by 3,751.0% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 8,087 shares of the company's stock worth $283,000 after buying an additional 7,877 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Vertex by 25.4% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 224,762 shares of the company's stock worth $7,869,000 after buying an additional 45,494 shares during the last quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex in the first quarter valued at about $8,203,000. Finally, Geneva Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex by 42.1% in the first quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 2,043,205 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,533,000 after purchasing an additional 605,617 shares during the last quarter. 70.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Price Performance

The business's fifty day moving average is $35.35 and its 200-day moving average is $38.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market cap of $4.07 billion, a PE ratio of 73.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.70.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.01. Vertex had a negative net margin of 7.09% and a positive return on equity of 27.16%. The firm had revenue of $184.56 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $184.60 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.15 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Vertex

Vertex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides enterprise tax technology solutions for retail trade, wholesale trade, and manufacturing industries in the United States and internationally. The company offers tax determination; compliance and reporting, including workflow management tools, role-based security, and event logging; tax data management; document management; analytics and insights; pre-built integration that includes mapping data fields, and business logic and configurations; industry-specific solutions; and technology specific solutions, such as chain flow accelerator and SAP-specific tools.