Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) Shares Bought by Great Lakes Advisors LLC

Great Lakes Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 844 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Virtu Financial were worth $397,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Virtu Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,081,000. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D purchased a new stake in Virtu Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,971,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 391,548 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,970,000 after purchasing an additional 5,371 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 60.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,691,000 after purchasing an additional 20,843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP lifted its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 124.7% during the third quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 53,785 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,638,000 after purchasing an additional 29,844 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.78% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Brett Fairclough sold 72,967 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.84, for a total value 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 represents a 44.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Stephen Cavoli sold 34,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 191,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,070,006.64. This trade represents a 15.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 140,967 shares of company stock worth $5,213,964 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 46.70% of the company’s stock.

Virtu Financial Trading Up 4.4 %

Shares of VIRT stock opened at $35.71 on Monday. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $19.06 and a 1-year high of $41.38. The company has a market cap of $5.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $37.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.91.

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

Virtu Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VIRT. Morgan Stanley increased 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 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Virtu Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.36.

About Virtu Financial

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.