Investors Purchase Large Volume of Put Options on Vertiv (NYSE:VRT)

On Wednesday, unusual options trading activity was noted for Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT). Investors bought a significant total of 53,036 put options for this stock, which represents a remarkable increase of 21% over the average volume of 43,792 put options typically traded.

Price Target Adjustments by Analysts

Several research analysts have recently shared their insights regarding Vertiv shares. On December 9th, Citigroup raised its price target for Vertiv from $141.00 to $155.00, assigning the company a "buy" rating. Meanwhile, on January 28th, Melius downgraded Vertiv from a "buy" to a "hold" rating and set a price target of $125.00. Additionally, on January 6th, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Vertiv with an "overweight" rating and a price objective of $150.00. Melius Research reaffirmed a "hold" rating and confirmed the $125.00 target price in their research note on January 28th. Fox Advisors also began coverage of Vertiv and rated it as "equal weight". Currently, four analysts have issued a hold rating, whereas eleven have indicated a buy rating. According to MarketBeat.com data, Vertiv holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus price target set at $135.33.

Current Stock Performance of Vertiv

During trading on Wednesday, shares of NYSE VRT declined by $9.12, bringing the price down to $82.46. The trading activity for the day amounted to 8,093,818 shares, which is slightly below the average trading volume of 8,511,471 shares. Vertiv's financial indicators show a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.02, and a current ratio of 1.65. Over the last year, the stock reached a low of $62.40 and a high of $155.84. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is noted at $106.11, while the two-hundred-day moving average stands at $111.68. Vertiv has a market cap of $31.40 billion, a price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of 64.66, and a P/E/G ratio of 1.07, with a beta of 1.71.

In its recent quarterly earnings report released on February 12th, Vertiv reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.99 for the quarter, surpassing analysts' consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.15. The company recorded a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity (ROE) of 61.41%. Compared to the previous year, when the firm posted an EPS of $0.56, the current outlook appears positive. Analysts predict that Vertiv will post an EPS of 3.59 for the current fiscal year.

Dividend Announcement by Vertiv

The company recently declared a quarterly dividend, which is scheduled for payment on March 27th. Shareholders recorded on March 18th will receive a dividend of $0.0375, which translates to an annualized dividend of $0.15, resulting in a yield of 0.18%. The ex-dividend date is also set for March 18th. Currently, Vertiv's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.72%.

Institutional Investor Activity in Vertiv

Recent activity among institutional investors reveals that several large investors have bought and sold shares in Vertiv. For instance, Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in Vertiv by 8.1% during the fourth quarter, now owning 1,126 shares valued at approximately $128,000. Prestige Wealth Management Group added 2.4% to its holdings during the same period, now owning 3,695 shares worth about $420,000. Accurate Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Vertiv by 4.1%, owning now 2,234 shares worth around $254,000 after acquiring additional shares. Similarly, Horizon Investment Services LLC and Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC increased their stake in the company by 4.1% and 3.1%, respectively. Notably, a total of 89.92% of Vertiv stock is currently held by institutional investors.

Company Overview

Vertiv Holdings Co, along with its subsidiaries, specializes in designing, manufacturing, and servicing critical digital infrastructure technologies and life cycle services that support data centers, communication networks, as well as commercial and industrial settings across the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Investors, Options, Trading