Morgan Stanley Lowers Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) Price Target to $198.00

Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) had its price objective trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $211.00 to $198.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an underweight rating on the closed-end fund’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on VRTS. Barclays lowered 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. StockNews.com downgraded Virtus Investment Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $274.00 to $258.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $225.75.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of VRTS stock opened at $190.82 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.29 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 11.86 and a quick ratio of 11.86. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $221.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $218.07. Virtus Investment Partners has a one year low of $190.42 and a one year high of $263.39.

Virtus Investment Partners Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a $2.25 dividend. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Virtus Investment Partners’s payout ratio is 53.25%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,300 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its position 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 purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,174 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 170.3% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 3,496 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $790,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. 80.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Virtus Investment Partners Company Profile

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.