Virtu Financial LLC Takes $577,000 Position in Texas Roadhouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:TXRH)

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Texas Roadhouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:TXRH) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 3,201 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $577,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of TXRH. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Texas Roadhouse in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in shares of Texas Roadhouse in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Texas Roadhouse in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in Texas Roadhouse by 32.2% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 267 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Texas Roadhouse during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on TXRH. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Texas Roadhouse from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $205.00 to $213.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Texas Roadhouse from $200.00 to $180.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Texas Roadhouse in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $213.00 price objective on the stock. Guggenheim cut their price objective on Texas Roadhouse from $205.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Texas Roadhouse from $194.00 to $178.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $192.91.

Insider Activity at Texas Roadhouse

In related news, CTO Hernan E. Mujica sold 2,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.66, for a total transaction of $349,853.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 17,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,928,866.92. This represents a 10.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Regina A. Tobin sold 3,154 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.64, for a total transaction of $585,508.56. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 18,414 shares in the company, valued at $3,418,374.96. This trade represents a 14.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,905 shares of company stock worth $3,198,367. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Texas Roadhouse Stock Up 0.9 %

TXRH stock opened at $177.50 on Wednesday. Texas Roadhouse, Inc. has a 52 week low of $146.75 and a 52 week high of $206.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $176.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $181.52.

Texas Roadhouse (NASDAQ:TXRH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The restaurant operator reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.07. Texas Roadhouse had a return on equity of 34.02% and a net margin of 8.07%. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Texas Roadhouse, Inc. will post 7.23 EPS for the current year.

Texas Roadhouse Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.68 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. This is an increase from Texas Roadhouse’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. Texas Roadhouse’s payout ratio is currently 42.04%.

About Texas Roadhouse

Texas Roadhouse, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates casual dining restaurants in the United States and internationally. It also operates and franchises restaurants under the Texas Roadhouse, Bubba's 33, and Jaggers names in 49 states and ten internationally. Texas Roadhouse, Inc was founded in 1993 and is based in Louisville, Kentucky.