Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) Reaches New 1-Year High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Virtu Financial shares hit a new 52-week high, touching $56.48 before closing around $55.10, as trading volume topped 1.8 million shares.
• Analysts have turned more positive on the stock, with several firms raising price targets or upgrading ratings; MarketBeat now shows an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a $48.67 price target.
• Recent earnings were strong, as the company beat estimates with $2.24 EPS on revenue of $786.53 million, up 30.7% year over year, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share.

Virtu Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VIRT - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $56.48 and last traded at $55.1020, with a volume of 1806564 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $54.49.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VIRT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Virtu Financial from $44.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Virtu Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Virtu Financial from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Zacks Research raised Virtu Financial from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Virtu Financial from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $48.67.

Virtu Financial Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.94. The firm has a market cap of $8.55 billion, a PE ratio of 9.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.62.

Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.24 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.58. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 51.63% and a net margin of 14.17%.The business had revenue of $786.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $613.12 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.30 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 30.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 5.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Virtu Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. Virtu Financial's payout ratio is presently 15.89%.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Joseph Molluso sold 200,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 326,585 shares in the company, valued at $12,697,624.80. The trade was a 37.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Brett Fairclough sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.06, for a total value of $1,501,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 42,473 shares in the company, valued at $2,126,198.38. The trade was a 41.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 46.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Virtu Financial

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Summit Global Investments purchased a new position in shares of Virtu Financial during the third quarter valued at about $1,109,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd grew its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 59.8% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 90,206 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,202,000 after purchasing an additional 33,762 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 114,887.0% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 26,447 shares of the company's stock valued at $939,000 after purchasing an additional 26,424 shares in the last quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 32.2% during the third quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 275,978 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,797,000 after purchasing an additional 67,230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co grew its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 240.5% during the third quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 63,836 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,266,000 after purchasing an additional 45,087 shares in the last quarter. 45.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Virtu Financial

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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