MeritValue

VIRTUS INVESTMENT PARTNERS, INC.

VRTSdata completeness 100%17 fiscal years on file
The thesis, from the filings

VIRTUS INVESTMENT PARTNERS, INC. earns about 26% on invested capital, and has bought back 13% of its shares over 5 years. The applicable estimate puts fair value near $211.59 a share.Whether it’s worth owning at today’s price is the last question — and yours to answer, below.

i. The business — what you’d actually own
FigureFY 2021FY 2022FY 2023FY 2024FY 2025
Revenue$979.2M1$886.4M2$845.3M3$906.9M3$852.9M3
Net income$208.1M4$106.6M5$141.5M6$152.5M6$136M6
Operating cash flow$665.7M7$132.7M8$237.2M9$1.76M9−$67.2M9
Capital expenditure$5.84M10$6.58M11$8.82M12$5.58M12$6.89M12
Free cash flow (derived)$659.9M7$126.1M8$228.3M9−$3.82M9−$74.1M9
Total debt$266.3M13$255M14$253.4M15$232.1M16$390M16
Cash & equivalents$586.1M17$589.2M18$341M18$400.3M18$478.2M18
Diluted shares8.0M7.6M7.4M7.2M6.9M

Superscripts are receipts. Each links to the SEC filing the number came from (full list at the bottom).

ii. Your slice — ownership made literal
If you owned
shares
Net assets behind them
$1,348.02
your share of equity
Profit it earned you last year
$196.26
Free cash flow it threw off
−$106.93
Debt you’d be carrying
$562.79

10 shares is a claim on $1,348.02 of net worth that earned you $196.26 and generated −$106.93 of cash last year, against $562.79 of debt.

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on invested capital
26% avg · 5y
FY21 52%FY22 22%FY23 18%FY24 21%FY25 16%

It earned an average 26% on invested capital over 5 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
−13% shares · 5y

Share count is down 13% over 5 years — management has been buying back stock, quietly handing owners a bigger slice. Total debt has risen 46% over the same window.

reading capital allocation →

Signals, not verdicts — read from the filings above. Numbers don’t prove a moat; they show its footprint. You decide.

iv. What it’s worth — engine v0.1.0
DCF · Growth Exit 10Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
DCF · Growth Exit 5Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
Earnings Power Value
$211.59
assumptions (8)
  • riskFreeRate4.7%
  • equityRiskPremium5.0%
  • beta100.0%
  • equityWeight85.0%
  • costOfDebtSpread1.5%
  • taxRate21.0%
  • normalizedEarnings$141.5M
  • growthAssumed0.0%
Graham Number
$246.11
assumptions (1)
  • grahamMultiplier2250.0%

Different models answer different questions — which to trust when →

Sources — the receipts
  1. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000883237-24-000025 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  2. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000883237-25-000010 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  3. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000883237-26-000009 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  4. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000883237-22-000056 (NetIncomeLoss)
  5. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000883237-25-000010 (ProfitLoss)
  6. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000883237-26-000009 (ProfitLoss)
  7. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000883237-24-000025 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  8. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000883237-25-000010 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  9. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000883237-26-000009 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  10. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000883237-24-000025 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  11. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000883237-25-000010 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  12. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000883237-26-000009 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  13. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000883237-23-000018 (LongTermDebt)
  14. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000883237-24-000025 (LongTermDebt)
  15. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000883237-25-000010 (LongTermDebt)
  16. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0000883237-26-000009 (LongTermDebt)
  17. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000883237-25-000010 (CashCashEquivalentsRestrictedCashAndRestrictedCashEquivalents)
  18. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000883237-26-000009 (CashCashEquivalentsRestrictedCashAndRestrictedCashEquivalents)