Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) Hits New 12-Month High After Dividend Announcement

Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $40.88 and last traded at $40.99, with a volume of 272119 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $40.09.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.34%. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on VIRT shares. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Virtu Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $32.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.21.

Virtu Financial Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a 50-day moving average of $37.00 and a 200-day moving average of $33.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.32. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 27.39% and a net margin of 9.61%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Virtu Financial during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Virtu Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 172.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 551 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in shares of Virtu Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Virtu Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.78% of the company’s stock.

About Virtu Financial

Virtu Financial, Inc operates as a financial services company in the United States, Asia Pacific, Canada, EMEA, Ireland, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Market Making and Execution Services. Its product includes offerings in execution, liquidity sourcing, analytics and broker-neutral, capital markets, and multi-dealer platforms in workflow technology.