Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Monday morning.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $274.00 to $258.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $221.00 to $200.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $225.75.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Performance

VRTS stock opened at $181.35 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.73 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $201.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $213.98. Virtus Investment Partners has a fifty-two week low of $175.27 and a fifty-two week high of $263.39. 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 Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. Virtus Investment Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Virtus Investment Partners

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 174.7% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 3,511 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $774,000 after purchasing an additional 2,233 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 17,329 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $3,822,000 after buying an additional 913 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 2,831 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $624,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 4,057 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $895,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 7,700 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,698,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.52% of the company’s stock.

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.