Federated Hermes Inc. Sells 472,005 Shares of Vertex, Inc. $VERX

Federated Hermes Inc. trimmed its position in Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) by 82.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 101,360 shares of the company’s stock after selling 472,005 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. owned 0.06% of Vertex worth $2,513,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VERX. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Vertex by 25.7% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 395 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vertex by 44.4% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,664 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in Vertex by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 137,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,456,000 after purchasing an additional 564 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Vertex by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,538 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in Vertex by 6.5% during the 2nd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 10,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $364,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.32% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VERX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Vertex in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Vertex in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Piper Sandler cut shares of Vertex from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Monday. Citizens Jmp reduced their price target on shares of Vertex from $50.00 to $37.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, JMP Securities set a $37.00 price target on shares of Vertex in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.60.

Vertex Stock Performance

Shares of VERX opened at $15.87 on Wednesday. Vertex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $15.69 and a 52 week high of $60.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a P/E ratio of -45.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.59. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $19.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.27.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $192.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $191.62 million. Vertex had a negative net margin of 7.32% and a positive return on equity of 26.84%. Vertex’s revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.16 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vertex declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, November 3rd that permits the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Vertex

Vertex Energy, Inc (NASDAQ: VERX) is a specialty refiner and marketer of transportation fuels and petrochemical feedstocks in the United States. The company collects and processes a variety of waste petroleum products, including used motor oil and industrial lubricants, which it converts into ultra-low-sulfur diesel, asphalt, and other refined products. By leveraging proprietary re-refining technologies and strategic feedstock sourcing, Vertex Energy aims to deliver cost-effective, lower-carbon fuel solutions to wholesale and retail customers across the country.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Vertex operates a network of refining and blending facilities in key regions, including the Central, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic markets.