Morgan Stanley Rates Virtus Investment Partners (VRTS) sell

Morgan Stanley maintains its sell rating on Virtus Investment Partners with a $119 price target, a 17.41% downside from the current price.

By EarningsIQ Research Desk · Published Jun 26, 2026, 10:01 AM EDT · Updated Jun 30, 2026, 11:03 AM EDT

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Morgan Stanley rated Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. ($VRTS) "sell" with a $119 price target on June 26, 2026.

Since the rating, $VRTS is up 4.9% after 1 week, up 13.6% after 1 month and down 15.5% to date (from the $145.41 close on Jun 26, 2026).

VRTS Virtus Investment Partners, Inc.

$122.93 -20.78% year to date

Daily close · Oct 16, 2026

Key Points

Morgan Stanley reiterated its sell rating on Virtus Investment Partners, setting a price target of $119 on June 26, 2026.
Morgan Stanley's $119 price target implies 17.41% downside from Virtus Investment Partners, Inc.'s ($VRTS) current $144.08 share price.
Shares of NYSE:VRTS traded near $135.69 on Friday, with a market cap of about $906.7 million and a P/E ratio of 8.0.
Insiders have been active, with EVP Barry Mandinach selling 5,000 shares, while others made smaller purchases in May.

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Morgan Stanley reiterated its sell rating on Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NYSE: VRTS) on June 26, 2026. The investment firm set a price target of $119 for the asset management company. This rating comes as the stock traded near $135.69 on Friday.

Analyst rating track record

Morgan Stanley vs. the S&P 500

YTD return +28.18% hypothetical

All-time return +24.84% S&P 500 +32.60%

vs. S&P 500 -7.76% behind the index

Hypothetical returns from Morgan Stanley's disclosed trades, not real profit or advice. How we model this.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

On June 26, 2026, Morgan Stanley maintained its sell rating on Virtus Investment Partners with a price target of $119. Earlier in May, the firm had also reiterated a sell rating but with a slightly lower target of $112. Other analysts have varied opinions: TD Cowen maintained a hold rating with a $131 target, while Piper Sandler rated it a buy with a $170 target.

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. Stock Up 15.3%

Shares of NYSE:VRTS traded near $135.69 on Friday. Virtus Investment Partners has a market cap of approximately $906.7 million and a P/E ratio of 8.0. The stock has experienced a 52-week low of $121.61 and a high of $215.06. Its 50-day moving average is around $142.19, and the 200-day moving average is about $156.09. The company maintains a current ratio of 2.97 and a quick ratio of 2.96, with a debt-to-equity ratio of 48.0.

12-month forecast

$VRTS price target

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. daily closes and this analyst's $119 target. Not advice.

Insider Buying and Selling at Virtus Investment Partners, Inc.

Insider activity at Virtus Investment Partners has been notable. On June 16, 2026, Barry Mandinach, Executive Vice President and Head of Distribution, sold 5,000 shares at an average price of $144.76. Earlier, on May 20, 2026, several insiders, including Melody Jones, John Weisenseel, Paul Greig, Peter Bain, and Timothy Holt, bought smaller amounts of shares at an average price of $137.93.

About Virtus Investment Partners

Virtus Investment Partners, Inc., based in Hartford, Connecticut, is a publicly owned investment manager. The company serves individual and institutional clients, offering a range of equity and fixed-income portfolios, mutual funds, and exchange-traded funds. Founded in 1995, Virtus employs a multi-manager approach and quantitative analysis for its investment strategies. The firm benchmarks its performance against the S&P 500 Index and conducts in-house research.

Bottom Line

Morgan Stanley's reiterated sell rating on Virtus Investment Partners highlights ongoing caution among analysts regarding the company's stock. While the shares traded near $135.69, the firm's price target of $119 suggests potential downside. Investors often follow analyst ratings and price targets to gauge market sentiment, but it's important to remember that these are backward-looking assessments.