Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) Short Interest Update

Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,298,200 shares, a growth of 31.8% from the May 31st total of 3,260,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 886,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.8 days.

Vertex Stock Up 0.7 %

NASDAQ:VERX traded up $0.26 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $36.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,767,735 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,029,271. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 901.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 18.35 and a beta of 0.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $32.59 and a 200-day moving average of $29.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. Vertex has a 52-week low of $17.59 and a 52-week high of $36.36.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.08 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $156.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $155.50 million. Vertex had a return on equity of 18.67% and a net margin of 1.29%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vertex will post 0.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on VERX shares. Citigroup upped their price target on Vertex from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Vertex in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Vertex from $40.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Vertex in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.11.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Jeffrey Westphal sold 1,500,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.93, for a total value of $49,395,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,554,641 shares in the company, valued at $84,124,328.13. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 45.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vertex

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex during the fourth quarter worth about $72,000. RiverPark Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex by 28.4% during the fourth quarter. RiverPark Advisors LLC now owns 3,319 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the last quarter. Sandia Investment Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Vertex during the first quarter worth about $159,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex during the first quarter worth about $166,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex during the first quarter worth about $192,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.10% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Company Profile

Vertex, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides enterprise tax technology solutions for retail trade, wholesale trade, and manufacturing industries in the United States and internationally. The company offers tax determination; compliance and reporting, including workflow management tools, role-based security, and event logging; tax data management; document management; analytics and insights; pre-built integration that includes mapping data fields, and business logic and configurations; industry-specific solutions; and technology specific solutions, such as chain flow accelerator and SAP-specific tools.