Brown Capital Management LLC Has $32.29 Million Stock Holdings in Vertex, Inc. $VERX

Brown Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) by 8.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,302,663 shares of the company’s stock after selling 125,731 shares during the period. Vertex makes up about 1.3% of Brown Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Brown Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex were worth $32,293,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VERX. State of Wyoming boosted its holdings in Vertex by 37.9% during the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 6,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $160,000 after acquiring an additional 1,777 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Vertex by 44.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 892,949 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,136,000 after buying an additional 275,520 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH grew its stake in shares of Vertex by 49.5% in the third quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 11,762 shares of the company’s stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 3,895 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC increased its position in Vertex by 10.4% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 10,732 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after acquiring an additional 1,014 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in Vertex by 8.6% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 21,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $536,000 after acquiring an additional 1,720 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.32% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on VERX. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Vertex from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $20.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on Vertex from $40.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. JMP Securities set a $37.00 price objective on Vertex in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Vertex in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $25.00 price target on Vertex in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.60.

Vertex Stock Performance

Shares of VERX stock opened at $18.70 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.41. Vertex, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.13 and a 12 month high of $60.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The firm has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of -53.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.60.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.01. Vertex had a positive return on equity of 26.84% and a negative net margin of 7.32%.The company had revenue of $192.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $191.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.16 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vertex announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, November 3rd that permits the company to buyback $150.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.