Arizona State Retirement System Buys Shares of 17,068 Vertex Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:VTNR)

Arizona State Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Vertex Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:VTNR – Get Rating) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 17,068 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $106,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VTNR. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Vertex Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $60,000. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vertex Energy by 122.8% in the first quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 5,770 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $142,000 after buying an additional 3,180 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Energy in the first quarter worth about $85,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank purchased a new position in Vertex Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $61,000. Finally, CI Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Vertex Energy by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 10,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Vertex Energy

In other news, COO James Gary Rhame acquired 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $6.33 per share, for a total transaction of $25,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 14,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,721.84. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Benjamin P. Cowart sold 66,666 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.00, for a total value of $533,328.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 5,450,608 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,604,864. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO James Gary Rhame acquired 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $6.33 per share, with a total value of $25,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 14,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,721.84. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 291,666 shares of company stock valued at $2,547,995 over the last 90 days. 15.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Energy Stock Down 5.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ VTNR opened at $6.60 on Friday. Vertex Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $5.42 and a 12-month high of $18.10. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $7.97 and a 200 day moving average of $7.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.47.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Craig Hallum lifted their price target on Vertex Energy from $12.00 to $15.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 28th. StockNews.com downgraded Vertex Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 11th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $15.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Energy in a research report on Wednesday, March 1st. Oppenheimer raised shares of Vertex Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $14.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 1st. Finally, Northland Securities started coverage on shares of Vertex Energy in a research note on Wednesday, February 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $15.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $14.43.

About Vertex Energy

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Vertex Energy, Inc engages in the recycle of industrial waste streams and off-specification commercial chemical products. The firm focuses on the recycle of used motor oil and other petroleum by-products. It operates through the following segments: Black Oil, Refining and Marketing and Recovery. The Black Oil segment collects and purchases used motor oil from third-party generators, established network of local and regional collectors and sells used motor oil to customers for use as a feedstock or replacement fuel for industrial burners.