Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) Stock Price Up 3.1% – Still a Buy?

Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT)’s stock price shot up 3.1% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $119.74 and last traded at $113.89. 5,447,874 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 46% from the average session volume of 10,132,764 shares. The stock had previously closed at $110.46.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on VRT. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Vertiv in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Vertiv in a research note on Monday, January 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho raised their target price on Vertiv from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Vertiv from $124.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Vertiv in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertiv has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $139.36.

Vertiv Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $126.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $105.75. The firm has a market cap of $43.02 billion, a PE ratio of 76.41, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.38.

Vertiv Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were given a $0.0375 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.15 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.13%. This is an increase from Vertiv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.03. Vertiv’s payout ratio is currently 6.67%.

Insider Transactions at Vertiv

In related news, Director Jan Van Dokkum sold 38,647 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.39, for a total transaction of $5,271,064.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,409,750. This trade represents a 60.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Stephen Liang sold 86,619 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.07, for a total transaction of $11,353,152.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,562,549.57. The trade was a 81.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 171,527 shares of company stock worth $23,105,682. 5.01% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vertiv

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRT. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Vertiv during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora purchased a new stake in Vertiv during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Krane Funds Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertiv in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertiv in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vertiv during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. 89.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertiv Company Profile

Vertiv Holdings Co, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and services critical digital infrastructure technologies and life cycle services for data centers, communication networks, and commercial and industrial environments in the Americas, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.