Hsbc Holdings PLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Virtu Financial, Inc. $VIRT

Hsbc Holdings PLC cut its holdings in Virtu Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VIRT) by 57.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 42,624 shares of the company’s stock after selling 57,863 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Virtu Financial were worth $1,442,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 1,624.1% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 942 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in shares of Virtu Financial in the first quarter worth approximately $222,000. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Virtu Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $1,934,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in Virtu Financial by 13.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 226,233 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,624,000 after purchasing an additional 26,743 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning purchased a new position in Virtu Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $235,000. 45.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Virtu Financial Price Performance

Virtu Financial stock opened at $59.58 on Wednesday. Virtu Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $31.55 and a 12-month high of $64.88. The stock has a market cap of $9.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.86, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $53.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.58. Virtu Financial had a net margin of 14.17% and a return on equity of 51.63%. The company had revenue of $786.53 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $613.12 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.30 EPS. Virtu Financial’s revenue was up 30.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Virtu Financial, Inc. will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Virtu Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Virtu Financial’s payout ratio is presently 15.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Virtu Financial from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Virtu Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Virtu Financial from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Virtu Financial from $51.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Virtu Financial in a report on Friday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Brett Fairclough sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.06, for a total value of $1,501,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 42,473 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,126,198.38. This represents a 41.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 46.76% of the company’s stock.

About Virtu Financial

Virtu Financial, Inc is a technology-driven electronic trading firm and market maker that provides liquidity and price discovery across a wide range of financial instruments. Leveraging advanced analytics, high-performance computing and proprietary algorithms, Virtu operates in equities, fixed income, foreign exchange, commodities and derivative products. Its technology platform is designed to capture bid-ask spreads in real time, manage risk through automated controls and adapt to changing market conditions.

The company offers a suite of execution services and market-making solutions to institutional clients such as asset managers, banks, broker-dealers and hedge funds.