Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) Upgraded at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a research report released on Monday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $84.00 price target on the stock.

VIRT has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Evercore raised Virtu Financial to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Virtu Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Virtu Financial from $51.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Virtu Financial in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Virtu Financial from $39.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Virtu Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.80.

Virtu Financial Stock Performance

Shares of VIRT opened at $58.81 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $9.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 0.65. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.84. Virtu Financial has a 12 month low of $31.55 and a 12 month high of $68.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Virtu Financial (NYSE:VIRT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $984.69 million during the quarter. Virtu Financial had a return on equity of 49.06% and a net margin of 13.50%.Virtu Financial has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.820-1.820 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Virtu Financial will post 6.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Virtu Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Virtu Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.95%.

Insider Activity

In other Virtu Financial news, Director Joseph Grano, Jr. sold 8,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $511,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 33,814 shares in the company, valued at $2,060,625.16. The trade was a 19.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Nixon sold 9,094 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.13, for a total transaction of $546,822.22. Following the sale, the director directly owned 30,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,858,137.26. The trade was a 22.74% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 46.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Virtu Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $376,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its holdings in shares of Virtu Financial by 1.1% in the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 34,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its position in shares of Virtu Financial by 1.7% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 23,815 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,419,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in Virtu Financial by 24.5% during the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 2,224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,000 after buying an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in Virtu Financial by 0.5% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 91,311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,015,000 after buying an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. 45.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Virtu Financial News

Here are the key news stories impacting Virtu Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgraded VIRT to Overweight from Neutral, signaling increased confidence in Virtu’s earnings outlook and potential for further appreciation. Virtu Financial Shares Rise After JPMorgan Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded Virtu Financial to Rank #2 (Buy), reflecting growing optimism about the company’s earnings prospects. Virtu Financial Upgraded to Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks said Virtu could beat upcoming earnings estimates again, citing its strong earnings-surprise history and favorable current estimate trends. Why Virtu Financial Could Beat Earnings Estimates Again
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts modestly raised several EPS forecasts: Q4 2026 estimates increased to $1.26 from $1.25, while longer-term Q2 2028, Q3 2028, and FY2028 estimates each rose by $0.01. These revisions support the improving earnings narrative, although Zacks Research still rates the stock Hold. Q2 EPS Estimate for Virtu Financial Boosted
• Neutral Sentiment: Virtu will release third-quarter 2026 results before the market opens on November 5 and hold a conference call at 8:00 a.m. Eastern time. The announcement gives investors a defined near-term catalyst but contains no new operating results. Virtu Financial Third-Quarter 2026 Results Conference Call

About Virtu Financial

Virtu Financial, Inc is a global financial services company that provides liquidity and execution services to the financial markets. Through its market-making business, the company buys and sells securities across a range of asset classes, including equities, exchange-traded funds, options, fixed income, foreign exchange and commodities. Its activities help facilitate trading for investors and other market participants.

Virtu also provides institutional clients with technology, trading tools, analytics and workflow solutions through its execution services business.