NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTCT) Stock Position Raised by AQR Capital Management LLC

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTCT - Free Report) by 61.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 426,865 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 161,915 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.60% of NetScout Systems worth $9,220,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTCT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of NetScout Systems by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,353,501 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $202,597,000 after purchasing an additional 64,475 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of NetScout Systems by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,118,267 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $89,202,000 after purchasing an additional 448,537 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in NetScout Systems by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,959,996 shares of the technology company's stock worth $42,463,000 after purchasing an additional 30,445 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in NetScout Systems by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,432,901 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $31,037,000 after buying an additional 62,603 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its position in shares of NetScout Systems by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,417,716 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,850,000 after buying an additional 5,176 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NetScout Systems news, EVP John Downing sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.25, for a total value of $72,750.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 130,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,161,036. This represents a 2.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jean A. Bua sold 11,999 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.92, for a total transaction of $287,016.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 71,361 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,706,955.12. The trade was a 14.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.71% of the company's stock.

NetScout Systems Price Performance

NetScout Systems stock traded up $0.71 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $22.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 28,915 shares, compared to its average volume of 537,198. NetScout Systems, Inc. has a twelve month low of $17.10 and a twelve month high of $27.89. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $20.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.80 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The technology company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52. NetScout Systems had a positive return on equity of 6.76% and a negative net margin of 50.90%. The business had revenue of $204.99 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $194.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.55 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that NetScout Systems, Inc. will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on NetScout Systems from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st.

About NetScout Systems

NetScout Systems, Inc provides service assurance and cybersecurity solutions for protect digital business services against disruptions in the United States, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers nGeniusONE management software that enables customers to predict, preempt, and resolve network and service delivery problems, as well as facilitate the optimization and capacity planning of their network infrastructures; and specialized platforms and analytic modules that enable its customers to analyze and troubleshoot traffic in radio access and Wi-Fi networks.