Lazard Asset Management LLC Has $459,000 Position in Vertex, Inc. $VERX

Lazard Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Vertex, Inc. (NASDAQ:VERX) by 99.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,577 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,992,423 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex were worth $459,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Vertex by 36.3% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 180,978 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,336,000 after purchasing an additional 48,181 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex by 25.7% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 395 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Vertex by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 81,935 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,869,000 after purchasing an additional 3,461 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vertex by 92.1% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 8,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after buying an additional 3,885 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Vertex by 10,910.6% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 13,543 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,000 after buying an additional 13,420 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.32% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:VERX opened at $11.57 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 578.79 and a beta of 0.83. Vertex, Inc. has a 12-month low of $10.21 and a 12-month high of $28.86. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $13.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.01. Vertex had a return on equity of 29.00% and a net margin of 0.45%.The firm had revenue of $203.97 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $202.21 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.15 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Vertex, Inc. will post 0.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on VERX. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Vertex in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Vertex from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Vertex from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $14.00 price target on shares of Vertex in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $21.00 price target on shares of Vertex in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.53.

Vertex Profile

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.