Check Point Software Technologies (NASDAQ:CHKP) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Key Points

• Check Point Software Technologies shares opened at $203.26 after gapping down from a previous close of $218.33, currently trading at $195.51 with a volume of 639,460 shares.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for the stock; Jefferies Financial Group increased its target price to $260.00 with a "buy" rating, while Morgan Stanley lowered it to $220.00 with an "equal weight" rating, reflecting a consensus opinion of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $236.50.
• Institutional ownership is high, with approximately 98.51% of the company’s stock held by hedge funds and other institutional investors, indicating strong confidence in the company's potential growth.

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ:CHKP - Get Free Report) shares gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $218.33, but opened at $203.26. Check Point Software Technologies shares last traded at $195.51, with a volume of 639,460 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CHKP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Check Point Software Technologies from $224.00 to $207.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on Check Point Software Technologies from $230.00 to $220.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Roth Capital began coverage on Check Point Software Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $215.00 target price for the company. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Check Point Software Technologies from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Scotiabank set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Check Point Software Technologies and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $228.08.

Check Point Software Technologies Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $20.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.62, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.64. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $221.33 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $217.87.

Check Point Software Technologies (NASDAQ:CHKP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The technology company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $665.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $663.10 million. Check Point Software Technologies had a net margin of 32.48% and a return on equity of 33.35%. The company's revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.17 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. will post 8.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Check Point Software Technologies

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CHKP. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Check Point Software Technologies by 39.6% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,531 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $339,000 after purchasing an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in Check Point Software Technologies during the second quarter worth about $296,000. City State Bank raised its position in Check Point Software Technologies by 260.8% during the second quarter. City State Bank now owns 3,085 shares of the technology company's stock worth $683,000 after acquiring an additional 2,230 shares during the last quarter. CNB Bank increased its position in Check Point Software Technologies by 69.7% during the second quarter. CNB Bank now owns 392 shares of the technology company's stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in Check Point Software Technologies by 1.8% during the second quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 183,755 shares of the technology company's stock worth $40,656,000 after buying an additional 3,296 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.51% of the company's stock.

About Check Point Software Technologies

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. develops, markets, and supports a range of products and services for IT security worldwide. The company offers a multilevel security architecture, cloud, network, mobile devices, endpoints information, and IOT solutions. It provides Check Point Infinity Architecture, a cyber security architecture that protects against fifth generation cyber-attacks across various networks, endpoint, cloud, workloads, Internet of Things, and mobile.