Prudential Financial Inc. Purchases 4,970 Shares of Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS)

Prudential Financial Inc. raised its position in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) by 44.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,124 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,970 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.23% of Virtus Investment Partners worth $3,557,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Virtus Investment Partners by 388.5% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 127 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 170.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners during the fourth quarter worth about $75,000. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 61.2% in 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. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd raised its stake in Virtus Investment Partners by 57.2% in the third quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 610 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.52% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VRTS shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Virtus Investment Partners from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Virtus Investment Partners from $274.00 to $258.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Virtus Investment Partners from $221.00 to $200.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Virtus Investment Partners presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $225.75.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTS opened at $173.59 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.27 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $186.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $210.00. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $167.13 and a 12-month high of $252.82.

Virtus Investment Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $2.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.18%. Virtus Investment Partners’s payout ratio is 53.25%.

About Virtus Investment Partners

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.