Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) Shares Bought by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRTS) by 33.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 81,738 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,544 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Virtus Investment Partners were worth $18,030,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 388.5% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 127 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Virtus Investment Partners by 170.3% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $75,000. KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 61.2% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 395 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd lifted its position in shares of Virtus Investment Partners by 57.2% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 610 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $128,000 after buying an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. 80.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Virtus Investment Partners Price Performance

Virtus Investment Partners stock opened at $172.40 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $186.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $210.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.20 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a quick ratio of 11.86, a current ratio of 11.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. has a 52-week low of $167.13 and a 52-week high of $252.82.

Virtus Investment Partners Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $2.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.22%. Virtus Investment Partners’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on VRTS shares. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $274.00 to $258.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $211.00 to $198.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Virtus Investment Partners from $221.00 to $200.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Virtus Investment Partners from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Virtus Investment Partners presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $225.75.

About Virtus Investment Partners

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.