Virtu Financial, Inc. to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.24 (NASDAQ:VIRT)

Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIRT) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be given a dividend of 0.24 per share by the financial services provider on Monday, March 16th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 27th.

Virtu Financial has a payout ratio of 23.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Virtu Financial to earn $3.23 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.96 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 29.7%.

Virtu Financial Trading Up 8.5%

Shares of NASDAQ VIRT traded up $3.20 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $40.69. 2,136,418 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,219,779. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $34.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $36.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $6.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.58. Virtu Financial has a 52-week low of $31.55 and a 52-week high of $45.77.

Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $467.02 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $422.92 million. Virtu Financial had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 32.08%. Virtu Financial’s revenue was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Virtu Financial will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Virtu Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Virtu Financial by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 29,986 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,343,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 96.0% during the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 582 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Virtu Financial by 51.9% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 972 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Virtu Financial by 0.5% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 76,473 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,425,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Virtu Financial by 103.8% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 760 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. 45.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Virtu Financial

Virtu Financial, Inc (NASDAQ: VIRT) is a leading global electronic trading firm specializing in market making, liquidity provision and trade execution services across a broad range of asset classes. Leveraging advanced quantitative models and proprietary trading technology, Virtu provides continuous bid and ask quotes in equities, fixed income, foreign exchange, commodities and digital assets. The firm’s infrastructure is designed to operate at high speeds and low latencies, enabling tight spreads and efficient price discovery for its clients.

In addition to its market-making activities, Virtu offers agency execution services, algorithmic trading strategies and transaction cost analysis tools.