Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) Shares Cross Above 200 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) shares crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $181.25 and traded as high as $195.00. Virtus Investment Partners shares last traded at $192.25, with a volume of 67,626 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $234.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Virtus Investment Partners from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $190.50.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Up 0.2%

The company has a current ratio of 11.86, a quick ratio of 11.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.38 and a beta of 1.43. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $193.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $181.25.

Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The closed-end fund reported $6.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.17 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $210.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $191.90 million. Virtus Investment Partners had a net margin of 13.42% and a return on equity of 21.56%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.53 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. will post 27.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Virtus Investment Partners Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a $2.40 dividend. This is an increase from Virtus Investment Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. Virtus Investment Partners’s payout ratio is presently 46.74%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Virtus Investment Partners

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRTS. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners during the 1st quarter worth $9,639,000. Gator Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 190.7% during the first quarter. Gator Capital Management LLC now owns 60,810 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $10,481,000 after buying an additional 39,895 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Virtus Investment Partners in the second quarter worth about $7,177,000. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Virtus Investment Partners by 38.5% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 113,192 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $19,510,000 after acquiring an additional 31,454 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in Virtus Investment Partners by 547.9% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 30,322 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $5,500,000 after acquiring an additional 25,642 shares during the last quarter. 80.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.