Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) Trading 8.9% Higher Following Insider Buying Activity

Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX)’s stock price was up 8.9% on Tuesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock traded as high as $13.00 and last traded at $13.1030. Approximately 283,932 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 2,475,246 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.03.

Specifically, Director Eric C. Andersen acquired 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $12.91 per share, with a total value of $516,400.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 150,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,940,902.31. This trade represents a 36.25% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Jeffrey Westphal purchased 150,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $12.53 per share, with a total value of $1,879,500.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 397,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,983,682.20. This trade represents a 60.55% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In other news, insider Jeffrey Westphal purchased 247,740 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $13.08 per share, for a total transaction of $3,240,439.20. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 247,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,240,439.20. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $25.00 price objective on Vertex in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Vertex from $22.00 to $16.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $16.00 price target on Vertex in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on Vertex from $30.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Vertex from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $23.07.

Vertex Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 328.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.59. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.35.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.17. The business had revenue of $194.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.33 million. Vertex had a net margin of 0.96% and a return on equity of 25.25%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.15 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vertex declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Monday, November 3rd that allows the company to repurchase $150.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Vertex

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vertex by 44.6% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 892,949 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,136,000 after purchasing an additional 275,520 shares in the last quarter. Gagnon Securities LLC raised its holdings in Vertex by 40.3% during the third quarter. Gagnon Securities LLC now owns 378,685 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,388,000 after purchasing an additional 108,839 shares in the last quarter. Herald Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Vertex by 81.8% during the 3rd quarter. Herald Investment Management Ltd now owns 200,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,958,000 after buying an additional 90,000 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex by 231.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,567,902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,448,000 after buying an additional 2,490,097 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 201,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,130,000 after buying an additional 25,812 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.32% of the company’s stock.

About Vertex

Vertex Energy, Inc (NASDAQ: VERX) is a specialty refiner and marketer of transportation fuels and petrochemical feedstocks in the United States. The company collects and processes a variety of waste petroleum products, including used motor oil and industrial lubricants, which it converts into ultra-low-sulfur diesel, asphalt, and other refined products. By leveraging proprietary re-refining technologies and strategic feedstock sourcing, Vertex Energy aims to deliver cost-effective, lower-carbon fuel solutions to wholesale and retail customers across the country.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Vertex operates a network of refining and blending facilities in key regions, including the Central, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic markets.