Brokerages Set Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) Target Price at $17.43

Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the fifteen brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $17.4286.

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on VERX shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $21.00 price objective on shares of Vertex in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $14.00 target price on Vertex in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Vertex from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Vertex in a research note on Monday, June 29th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Vertex from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 4th.

Vertex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VERX opened at $12.14 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of 607.30 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. Vertex has a twelve month low of $10.21 and a twelve month high of $26.63. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $13.21.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.01. Vertex had a net margin of 0.45% and a return on equity of 29.00%. The business had revenue of $203.97 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $202.21 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.15 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex will post 0.54 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in Vertex during the second quarter worth $245,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Vertex by 74.8% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 8,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 3,683 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in Vertex by 275.2% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 141,793 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,686,000 after purchasing an additional 104,006 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of Vertex during the first quarter valued at about $37,796,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex by 8.1% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 290,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,454,000 after purchasing an additional 21,700 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.32% of the company’s stock.

About Vertex

Vertex Energy, Inc (NASDAQ: VERX) is a specialty refiner and marketer of transportation fuels and petrochemical feedstocks in the United States. The company collects and processes a variety of waste petroleum products, including used motor oil and industrial lubricants, which it converts into ultra-low-sulfur diesel, asphalt, and other refined products. By leveraging proprietary re-refining technologies and strategic feedstock sourcing, Vertex Energy aims to deliver cost-effective, lower-carbon fuel solutions to wholesale and retail customers across the country.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Vertex operates a network of refining and blending facilities in key regions, including the Central, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic markets.