Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $212.95, but opened at $223.61. Virtus Investment Partners shares last traded at $223.60, with a volume of 786 shares traded.

The closed-end fund reported $6.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.81 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $205.13 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $207.73 million. Virtus Investment Partners had a net margin of 12.41% and a return on equity of 20.35%.

Virtus Investment Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a $2.25 dividend. This is a positive change from Virtus Investment Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.90. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.21%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. Virtus Investment Partners’s payout ratio is presently 50.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on VRTS shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Virtus Investment Partners from $208.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Virtus Investment Partners from $250.00 to $247.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $267.00 to $264.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Virtus Investment Partners in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $206.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $233.50.

Institutional Trading of Virtus Investment Partners

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 6,550.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 133 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Virtus Investment Partners in the second quarter worth about $42,000. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners in the third quarter worth about $42,000. Bessemer Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners during the 1st quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 625.6% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 312 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the period. 80.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Up 0.4 %

The company has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a PE ratio of 14.32 and a beta of 1.46. The company’s fifty day moving average is $208.26 and its 200-day moving average is $218.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 15.18 and a current ratio of 15.18.

Virtus Investment Partners Company Profile

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to individual and institutional clients. It launches separate client focused equity and fixed income portfolios. The firm launches equity, fixed income, and balanced mutual funds for its clients.