Granahan Investment Management LLC Acquires 234,881 Shares of Vertex, Inc. $VERX

Granahan Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) by 431.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 289,309 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 234,881 shares during the quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex were worth $7,172,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vertex in the second quarter worth about $54,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Vertex by 25.7% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,933 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 395 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Vertex during the 3rd quarter valued at about $130,000. State of Wyoming boosted its position in Vertex by 37.9% in the 3rd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 6,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $160,000 after buying an additional 1,777 shares during the period. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Vertex by 108.8% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $204,000 after buying an additional 3,012 shares during the period. 70.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Price Performance

Shares of VERX opened at $13.30 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $16.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.25. Vertex, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $11.86 and a fifty-two week high of $42.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.13 billion, a PE ratio of 332.58, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.64.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.17. The company had revenue of $194.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.33 million. Vertex had a net margin of 0.96% and a return on equity of 24.70%. Vertex’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.15 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VERX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Vertex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $16.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group set a $25.00 price objective on Vertex in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Citizens Jmp reduced their price objective on Vertex from $37.00 to $25.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Vertex in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $20.00 target price on Vertex in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jeffrey Westphal purchased 247,740 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $13.08 per share, for a total transaction of $3,240,439.20. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 247,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,240,439.20. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Eric C. Andersen purchased 40,000 shares of Vertex stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $12.91 per share, with a total value of $516,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 150,341 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,940,902.31. This represents a 36.25% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders bought a total of 437,740 shares of company stock worth $5,636,339 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 43.25% of the company’s stock.

Vertex 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.