Analysts Set Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) Target Price at $31.36

Shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $31.36.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Brett Fairclough sold 72,967 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.84, for a total transaction of $2,688,104.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 90,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,343,193.16. This trade represents a 44.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 34,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.88, for a total transaction of $1,253,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 191,703 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,070,006.64. This trade represents a 15.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 140,967 shares of company stock worth $5,213,964. Corporate insiders own 46.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Virtu Financial

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Virtu Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,081,000. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D purchased a new stake in Virtu Financial during the third quarter valued at about $1,971,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Virtu Financial by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 391,548 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,970,000 after buying an additional 5,371 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Virtu Financial by 60.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,691,000 after buying an additional 20,843 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP lifted its stake in Virtu Financial by 124.7% during the third quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 53,785 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,638,000 after buying an additional 29,844 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.78% of the company’s stock.

Virtu Financial Stock Up 0.8 %

VIRT stock opened at $36.57 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Virtu Financial has a fifty-two week low of $18.72 and a fifty-two week high of $41.38. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $37.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.61. The stock has a market cap of $5.66 billion, a PE ratio of 12.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.46.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.32. Virtu Financial had a net margin of 9.61% and a return on equity of 27.39%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Virtu Financial will post 3.13 EPS for the current year.

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.63%. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.32%.

Virtu Financial Company Profile

Virtu Financial, Inc operates as a financial services company in the United States, Asia Pacific, Canada, EMEA, Ireland, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Market Making and Execution Services. Its product includes offerings in execution, liquidity sourcing, analytics and broker-neutral, capital markets, and multi-dealer platforms in workflow technology.