Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) Sets New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $181.65 and last traded at $183.69, with a volume of 55820 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $188.90.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTS has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Virtus Investment Partners from $274.00 to $258.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com cut Virtus Investment Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Virtus Investment Partners from $221.00 to $200.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $225.75.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Down 2.8 %

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $215.60 and its 200-day moving average is $216.23. The firm has a market cap of $1.29 billion, a PE ratio of 7.26 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a quick ratio of 11.86, a current ratio of 11.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Virtus Investment Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.90%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Virtus Investment Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.25%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Virtus Investment Partners

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,300 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 388.5% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 127 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 11.9% in the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,174 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 170.3% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 61.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 395 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.52% of the company’s stock.

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.