AQR Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in NETGEAR, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTGR)

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in NETGEAR, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTGR - Free Report) by 50.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 280,385 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 93,951 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.97% of NETGEAR worth $7,814,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in NETGEAR by 126.4% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 675,209 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $18,818,000 after purchasing an additional 376,974 shares during the last quarter. Portolan Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of NETGEAR during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,357,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of NETGEAR by 31.6% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 770,464 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $21,473,000 after buying an additional 184,863 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in NETGEAR in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,449,000. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in NETGEAR by 343.1% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 192,226 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $5,357,000 after buying an additional 148,841 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James upped their price target on NETGEAR from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of NETGEAR from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th.

NETGEAR Trading Up 0.6%

NASDAQ:NTGR traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $29.35. 160,471 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 338,546. The stock has a market capitalization of $844.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.97 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.26. NETGEAR, Inc. has a one year low of $12.08 and a one year high of $31.55.

NETGEAR (NASDAQ:NTGR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by $0.37. NETGEAR had a net margin of 1.83% and a negative return on equity of 9.24%. The company had revenue of $162.06 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $152.24 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.28) earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that NETGEAR, Inc. will post -1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NETGEAR news, CFO Murray Bryan sold 3,848 shares of NETGEAR stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.92, for a total transaction of $92,044.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 193,032 shares in the company, valued at $4,617,325.44. The trade was a 1.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Charles J. Prober sold 10,929 shares of NETGEAR stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.64, for a total value of $291,148.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 507,763 shares in the company, valued at $13,526,806.32. The trade was a 2.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 17,448 shares of company stock worth $458,221. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

NETGEAR Profile

NETGEAR, Inc provides connectivity solutions the Americas; Europe, the Middle East, Africa; and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Connected Home, and NETGEAR for Business. The Connected Home segment offers Wi-Fi routers and home Wi-Fi mesh systems, Wi-Fi hotspots, digital displays, broadband modems, Wi-Fi gateways, Wi-Fi range extenders, powerline adapters, and Wi-Fi network adapters; and provides value-added service offerings, including security and privacy, technical support, and parental controls.