406,757 Shares in Vertex, Inc. $VERX Bought by Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC

Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 406,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,836,000. Vertex makes up approximately 0.7% of Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC owned about 0.25% of Vertex at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex in the second quarter valued at about $54,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Vertex by 25.7% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,933 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 395 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Vertex by 49.1% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 4,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 1,376 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.32% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VERX has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen started coverage on Vertex in a research note on Monday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $14.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Vertex from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. DA Davidson set a $15.00 price objective on shares of Vertex in a report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Vertex from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Vertex from $14.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.47.

Vertex Stock Performance

Shares of VERX opened at $12.85 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.08 billion, a PE ratio of -257.00 and a beta of 0.83. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $12.62 and a 200-day moving average of $14.59. Vertex, Inc. has a one year low of $10.21 and a one year high of $36.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.01. Vertex had a negative net margin of 0.84% and a positive return on equity of 26.04%. The company had revenue of $196.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $194.82 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.15 EPS. Vertex’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Vertex Company Profile

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.