Kestra Investment Management LLC Makes New $28,000 Investment in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT)

Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 794 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $28,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VIRT. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in Virtu Financial by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 298,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,090,000 after buying an additional 21,918 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 3,011.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 53,914 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,770,000 after acquiring an additional 52,181 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. increased its position in Virtu Financial by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 12,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $367,000 after purchasing an additional 888 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Virtu Financial by 31.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,189 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 3,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its holdings in Virtu Financial by 88.2% in the 3rd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 62,707 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,931,000 after purchasing an additional 29,385 shares in the last quarter. 45.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Virtu Financial Price Performance

Virtu Financial stock opened at $35.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $5.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.92, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.46. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.62 and a 1 year high of $41.38. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $37.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $34.22.

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

Virtu Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.71%. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.32%.

Insider Transactions at Virtu Financial

In related news, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 34,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.88, for a total value of $1,253,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 191,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,070,006.64. This trade represents a 15.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Brett Fairclough sold 72,967 shares of Virtu Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 90,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,343,193.16. This trade represents a 44.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 140,967 shares of company stock worth $5,213,964 in the last three months. 46.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on VIRT shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.36.

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.