Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) Shares Down 13% – Time to Sell?

Vertiv Holdings Co. (NYSE:VRT)’s stock price was down 13% during trading on Wednesday. The company traded as low as $202.59 and last traded at $205.2470. 12,805,438 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 97% from the average session volume of 6,491,717 shares. The stock had previously closed at $235.97.

Trending Headlines about Vertiv

Here are the key news stories impacting Vertiv this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vertiv’s recent quarter reportedly beat revenue estimates by about $550 million, delivered record results and came with raised guidance. One Wall Street team argues the selloff may overstate the threat because orders have not yet been affected. Vertiv Beat by $550 Million Last Week. It Has Lost 23% Since Tuesday’s Vote Vertiv Suffered a Near 40% Drop Over 6 Months
• Positive Sentiment: A report says Vertiv has locked in three years of AI power-chip supply. Securing supply could help the company serve continued demand for data-center infrastructure. Vertiv Holdings Co Locked In Three Years Of AI Power Chip Supply
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks describes VRT as a strong growth stock, but its article highlights a research-service stock-rating framework rather than a new company development. Here’s Why Vertiv Holdings Co. Is a Strong Growth Stock
• Negative Sentiment: The main near-term pressure is concern that the election outcome and potential data-center permitting limits, including a reported Texas permit freeze, could restrain AI infrastructure spending. The reports indicate this is a prospective risk; they do not establish that Vertiv’s orders have declined. Steve Weiss Says the Midterms Just Put a Lid on AI Spending
• Negative Sentiment: Broader weakness in AI-related stocks and ETFs may be adding to pressure on VRT, while the article notes the shares have lost about 23% since Tuesday’s vote. Some of the Year’s Hottest AI ETFs Are in Big Trouble Today

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on VRT shares. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Vertiv from $440.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Vertiv from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of Vertiv from $360.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Vertiv from $352.00 to $301.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Vertiv from $358.00 to $362.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertiv presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $337.78.

Vertiv Stock Up 3.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $70.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.11, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 2.11. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $236.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $269.74.

Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.39. Vertiv had a return on equity of 53.31% and a net margin of 15.99%. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.75 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.24 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 61.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertiv Holdings Co. will post 7.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vertiv Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Monday, September 14th were given a $0.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 14th. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. Vertiv’s payout ratio is currently 4.67%.

Insider Transactions at Vertiv

In related news, Director Edward Monser sold 15,287 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.82, for a total transaction of $3,880,146.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,188,030. This represents a 48.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertiv

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VRT. Sachetta LLC increased its holdings in Vertiv by 41.4% during the 1st quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 123 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vertiv by 60.5% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertiv during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Vertiv by 87.3% during the second quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 148 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Center for Financial Planning Inc. boosted its holdings in Vertiv by 554.2% during the 1st quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. 89.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Vertiv

Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE: VRT) designs, manufactures and services critical digital infrastructure used by data centers, communications networks and commercial and industrial facilities. Its offerings help customers maintain reliable power, cooling and operating conditions for technology systems.

The company’s products and solutions include uninterruptible power supplies, power distribution equipment, thermal management systems, racks, integrated modular infrastructure, and monitoring and control software.