Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) Trading Up 3.6% – Here’s Why

Vertiv Holdings Co. (NYSE:VRT) shares shot up 3.6% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $182.50 and last traded at $181.49. 5,557,003 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 3% from the average session volume of 5,387,622 shares. The stock had previously closed at $175.18.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Vertiv in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Barclays raised Vertiv from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $181.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Wolfe Research lowered Vertiv from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $211.00 price target on shares of Vertiv in a report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Vertiv from $173.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $187.89.

Vertiv Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $169.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $155.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market cap of $69.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 68.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 2.06.

Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.25. Vertiv had a return on equity of 50.82% and a net margin of 10.67%.The firm had revenue of $2.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.76 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Vertiv Holdings Co. will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Vertiv Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 25th were issued a dividend of $0.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 25th. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. This is an increase from Vertiv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.04. Vertiv’s payout ratio is currently 9.43%.

Insider Transactions at Vertiv

In related news, EVP Stephen Liang sold 5,501 shares of Vertiv stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.48, for a total value of $937,810.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,050 shares in the company, valued at $690,444. This trade represents a 57.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertiv

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its position in Vertiv by 1,560.0% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 166 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertiv in the second quarter worth $26,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vertiv by 67.6% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 171 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Avion Wealth increased its position in Vertiv by 99.1% during the second quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 213 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Vertiv by 54.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. 89.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vertiv Company Profile

Vertiv is a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions for data centers, communication networks and commercial and industrial environments. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, the company designs, manufactures and services equipment and software that support power availability, thermal management and IT infrastructure management for a broad set of end markets, including hyperscale and enterprise data centers, colocation providers, telecom operators and industrial customers.

The company’s product portfolio includes uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), power distribution units (PDUs), battery and DC power systems, precision cooling and thermal management equipment, racks and enclosures, and integrated modular infrastructure.