Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) Trading Up 1.4% – Time to Buy?

Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT) rose 1.4% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $143.48 and last traded at $137.79. Approximately 2,204,520 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 61% from the average daily volume of 5,613,764 shares. The stock had previously closed at $135.88.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on VRT. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Vertiv in a report on Monday, January 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Vertiv from $141.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Vertiv in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Vertiv in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on Vertiv from $115.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertiv currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $141.75.

Vertiv Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $53.46 billion, a PE ratio of 94.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $126.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $103.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.07. Vertiv had a net margin of 7.72% and a return on equity of 55.33%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.98 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vertiv Holdings Co will post 2.7 EPS for the current year.

Vertiv Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were given a $0.0375 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.15 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.11%. This is an increase from Vertiv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.03. Vertiv’s payout ratio is currently 6.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Anand Sanghi sold 30,914 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.46, for a total value of $4,373,094.44. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,751,114.08. This trade represents a 61.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Stephen Liang sold 86,619 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.07, for a total value of $11,353,152.33. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,562,549.57. This represents a 81.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 171,527 shares of company stock valued at $23,105,682. Insiders own 5.01% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertiv

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Vertiv during the 4th quarter worth approximately $218,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Vertiv by 108.0% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,147 shares of the company’s stock worth $244,000 after buying an additional 1,115 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Vertiv by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,126 shares of the company’s stock worth $128,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its holdings in Vertiv by 43.3% in the 4th quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 9,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,071,000 after buying an additional 2,850 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zweig DiMenna Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertiv by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. Zweig DiMenna Associates LLC now owns 305,075 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,660,000 after acquiring an additional 26,625 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.92% of the company’s stock.

Vertiv Company Profile

Vertiv Holdings Co, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and services critical digital infrastructure technologies and life cycle services for data centers, communication networks, and commercial and industrial environments in the Americas, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.