Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Virtu Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VIRT) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $65.25 and last traded at $65.0560, with a volume of 838 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $64.27.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VIRT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Virtu Financial in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Zacks Research raised shares of Virtu Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Virtu Financial from $51.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Virtu Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.67.

Virtu Financial Stock Up 2.1%

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $55.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.18 billion, a PE ratio of 10.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $786.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $613.12 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.30 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 30.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Virtu Financial

In other news, COO Brett Fairclough sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.06, for a total transaction of $1,501,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 42,473 shares in the company, valued at $2,126,198.38. This trade represents a 41.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 46.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Virtu Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 480.6% in the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 836 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 692 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 103.8% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in Virtu Financial by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 972 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Virtu Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Virtu Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 45.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Virtu Financial Company Profile

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.