Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $110.46, but opened at $115.95. Vertiv shares last traded at $114.07, with a volume of 2,527,854 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Vertiv from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Melius Research restated a “hold” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Vertiv in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Vertiv in a research note on Monday, January 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Vertiv from $115.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Fox Advisors started coverage on shares of Vertiv in a report on Monday, January 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertiv currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $139.36.

Vertiv Stock Up 2.2 %

The stock has a market cap of $43.97 billion, a PE ratio of 78.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.63. The business has a fifty day moving average of $125.62 and a 200-day moving average of $106.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Vertiv Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other Vertiv news, insider Anand Sanghi sold 30,914 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.46, for a total transaction of $4,373,094.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,751,114.08. This represents a 61.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jakki L. Haussler sold 15,347 shares of Vertiv stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.38, for a total transaction of $2,108,370.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,425 shares in the company, valued at approximately $470,526.50. The trade was a 81.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 171,527 shares of company stock worth $23,105,682. Company insiders own 5.01% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertiv

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in shares of Vertiv by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertiv by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $254,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertiv by 25.1% during the third quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 458 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of Vertiv by 18.6% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 638 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. raised its stake in Vertiv by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 13,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,305,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. 89.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.