EntryPoint Capital LLC Boosts Holdings in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS)

EntryPoint Capital LLC raised its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) by 625.6% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 312 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC’s holdings in Virtus Investment Partners were worth $77,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 5.1% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 6,072 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,504,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. acquired a new position in Virtus Investment Partners in the 1st quarter valued at about $57,000. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners during the 1st quarter worth about $517,000. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,377 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $341,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 80.6% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 13,918 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $3,451,000 after buying an additional 6,213 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.52% of the company’s stock.

Virtus Investment Partners Stock Down 4.6 %

NASDAQ:VRTS opened at $234.48 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.13 and a beta of 1.46. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $227.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $232.26. Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $168.78 and a fifty-two week high of $263.39.

Virtus Investment Partners (NASDAQ:VRTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The closed-end fund reported $6.53 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.61 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $203.02 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $204.71 million. Virtus Investment Partners had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 14.02%. Research analysts forecast that Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. will post 26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Virtus Investment Partners Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.90 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $7.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. Virtus Investment Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.78%.

Insider Transactions at Virtus Investment Partners

In related news, EVP Barry M. Mandinach sold 7,886 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.00, for a total transaction of $1,845,324.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 12,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,905,812. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on VRTS shares. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $250.00 to $247.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 8th. StockNews.com cut Virtus Investment Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $224.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Virtus Investment Partners from $267.00 to $264.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th.

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.