Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) Shares Up 7.1% – Here’s Why

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) was up 7.1% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $150.44 and last traded at $150.4950. 717,205 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 57% from the average session volume of 1,659,057 shares. The stock had previously closed at $140.54.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on GWRE. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Zacks Research lowered Guidewire Software from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 25th. Citizens Jmp reduced their target price on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $220.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 5th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Guidewire Software from $225.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 5th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.42.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $131.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $143.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a current ratio of 2.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.04 and a beta of 0.95.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The technology company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $372.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $355.92 million. Guidewire Software had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 11.25%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.88 EPS. Analysts forecast that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Guidewire Software

In related news, President John P. Mullen sold 4,292 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.74, for a total transaction of $509,632.08. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 131,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,568,595.10. This represents a 3.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 5,830 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.74, for a total transaction of $692,254.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 199,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,721,402.24. This trade represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 31,393 shares of company stock worth $3,960,558 over the last quarter. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Guidewire Software

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Guidewire Software in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software by 703.0% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 36,093 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $8,220,000 after acquiring an additional 31,598 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software in the 2nd quarter worth about $305,000. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in Guidewire Software by 30.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 2,024 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $477,000 after acquiring an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in Guidewire Software by 30.6% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,911 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,156,000 after acquiring an additional 1,152 shares in the last quarter.

About Guidewire Software

Guidewire Software, Inc develops software products and cloud services for property and casualty (P&C) insurance carriers. Headquartered in San Mateo, California, the company’s offerings are designed to help insurers manage the core functions of their business—policy administration, billing and claims—while supporting digital engagement, analytics and operational modernization.

Guidewire’s core product portfolio is commonly known as the InsuranceSuite, which includes PolicyCenter for policy administration, BillingCenter for billing and receivables, and ClaimCenter for claims management.