Whittier Trust Co. Sells 259,014 Shares of Vertex, Inc. $VERX

Whittier Trust Co. lowered its stake in shares of Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) by 97.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,565 shares of the company’s stock after selling 259,014 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Vertex were worth $130,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vertex by 9.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,387,126 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,917,000 after buying an additional 689,143 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Vertex by 231.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,567,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,448,000 after buying an additional 2,490,097 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Vertex by 9.2% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,728,504 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,640,000 after buying an additional 229,774 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Vertex by 76.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,161,501 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,584,000 after buying an additional 937,905 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Vertex by 19.9% during the third quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,049,490 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,807,000 after buying an additional 340,680 shares during the last quarter. 70.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Stock Performance

Shares of VERX stock opened at $12.35 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 308.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.80. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $12.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.99. Vertex, Inc. has a 52 week low of $10.59 and a 52 week high of $42.44.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.17. The firm had revenue of $194.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $194.33 million. Vertex had a net margin of 0.96% and a return on equity of 24.70%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.15 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex

In other Vertex news, Director Eric C. Andersen acquired 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $12.91 per share, for a total transaction of $516,400.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 150,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,940,902.31. This trade represents a 36.25% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jeffrey Westphal acquired 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $12.53 per share, for a total transaction of $1,879,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 397,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,983,682.20. The trade was a 60.55% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have acquired a total of 437,740 shares of company stock worth $5,636,339 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 43.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on VERX shares. Morgan Stanley set a $20.00 price target on shares of Vertex in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex from $30.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. DA Davidson set a $13.00 price objective on shares of Vertex in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Vertex in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex from $22.00 to $16.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.07.

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.