Quantbot Technologies LP Trims Stock Holdings in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS)

Quantbot Technologies LP lessened its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) by 42.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,204 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 881 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Virtus Investment Partners were worth $266,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRTS. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in shares of 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 valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 388.5% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 127 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 170.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 61.2% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 395 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 21.5% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,157 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $242,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.52% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on VRTS shares. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $274.00 to $258.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com raised Virtus Investment Partners from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Virtus Investment Partners from $221.00 to $200.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Virtus Investment Partners has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $225.75.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTS opened at $173.21 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $186.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $210.07. The company has a current ratio of 11.86, a quick ratio of 11.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. has a 12-month low of $167.13 and a 12-month high of $252.82. The company has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.25 and a beta of 1.49.

Virtus Investment Partners Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $2.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.20%. Virtus Investment Partners’s payout ratio is currently 53.25%.

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.