1834 Investment Advisors Co. Reduces Holdings in Virtu Financial, Inc.

In the latest Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, 1834 Investment Advisors Co. has disclosed a decrease in its position in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT - Free Report) by 11.7% during the fourth quarter of the year. Following this adjustment, the firm currently owns 286,847 shares of the financial services provider after selling off 38,066 shares in the noted period.

Virtu Financial now constitutes 1.3% of 1834 Investment Advisors Co.'s total holdings, ranking it as the firm's 15th largest investment. At the conclusion of the recent quarter, the firm owned approximately 0.19% of Virtu Financial, which was valued at around $10,235,000.

Other significant investors have also been active in trading shares of Virtu Financial recently. For instance, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC has raised its stake in the company by 7.3% during the fourth quarter, now holding 176,438 shares valued at $6,295,000 after purchasing an additional 12,061 shares. Meanwhile, Albion Financial Group UT has taken its first step into investing by acquiring a new stake in Virtu Financial, valued at around $45,000.

Diversify Wealth Management LLC has increased its position by 4.0%, now owning 45,401 shares valued at about $1,573,000 after acquiring 1,745 additional shares. Furthermore, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. has also raised its holdings by 1.2%, now holding 30,132 shares valued at $1,075,000 after buying an extra 371 shares in the previous quarter.

Lastly, USA Financial Formulas has seen a significant increase in its holdings, which rose by an impressive 910.5% during the fourth quarter, resulting in ownership of 11,085 shares worth $396,000 after purchasing an additional 9,988 shares. Overall, institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 45.78% of Virtu Financial's stock.

Recent Performance of Virtu Financial Stock

As of Friday, shares of NASDAQ:VIRT opened at $39.52. The company's fifty-day moving average stands at $36.55, and the 200-day moving average is $32.56. Over the past year, Virtu Financial has traded between a low of $16.02 and a high of $39.60. The company's market capitalization is approximately $6.11 billion, with a price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of 19.86 and a P/E/G ratio of 0.49. Additionally, Virtu Financial has a beta coefficient of 0.45, a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, and both a current and quick ratio of 0.47.

Virtu Financial recently released its earnings results on October 24th. The financial services firm reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.82 for the quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.03. The company's revenue for the quarter amounted to $388.00 million, surpassing analyst expectations of $379.18 million. Virtu Financial achieved a net margin of 7.29% and a return on equity of 23.22%. Comparing year-on-year results, the company’s revenue surged by 30.2%, with the previous year showing an EPS of $0.40. Analysts expect Virtu Financial to report an EPS of 2.9 this year.

Dividend Announcement by Virtu Financial

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was disbursed to shareholders on December 15th. Shareholders who were on record as of December 1st received a dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was November 29th. This results in an annualized dividend of $0.96, yielding 2.43%, with a dividend payout ratio currently at 48.24%.

Analyst Opinions and Price Targets

Multiple brokerages have updated their ratings and price targets for Virtu Financial. For example, Morgan Stanley adjusted their target price from $23.00 to $25.00, assigning an “equal weight” rating. Similarly, Goldman Sachs increased their target from $26.00 to $29.00, maintaining a “neutral” stance. However, Bank of America reduced its price target from $37.00 to $35.00, whilst still in a “buy” rating. Piper Sandler has raised their price target substantially from $35.00 to $40.00, categorizing the stock as “overweight.” Finally, Citigroup has also adjusted its target from $32.00 to $37.00, keeping a “buy” rating. In general, investment analysts have issued various ratings, with five categorizing it as a hold and three as a buy, leading to an average rating of “Hold” with a consensus price target of $30.21.

Overview of Virtu Financial

Virtu Financial, Inc. operates as a financial services provider across multiple regions, including the United States, Asia Pacific, Canada, EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa), and globally. The company operates through two main segments: Market Making and Execution Services. They offer a variety of products that include execution solutions, liquidity sourcing, analytics, broker-neutral services, capital markets, and multi-dealer platforms within their technological workflows.

Investment, Stock, Earnings