Constellation Software Inc. (TSE:CSU) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Sell-Side Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate Constellation Software a “Moderate Buy”: Eight of nine brokerages recommend buying the stock, while one rates it a hold. The average 12-month price target is C$3,884.40.
• Recent financial results were solid: The company reported quarterly revenue of C$4.74 billion, EPS of C$18.37, a 7.57% net margin and a 25.24% return on equity.
• Constellation announced a quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share, equal to $4.00 annually and a 0.1% yield. An insider also sold 1,200 shares for approximately C$3.84 million.

Constellation Software Inc. (TSE:CSU - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the nine brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$3,884.40.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. National Bank Financial upped their target price on Constellation Software from C$3,500.00 to C$3,700.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a C$4,400.00 target price on Constellation Software and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Constellation Software from C$3,185.00 to C$3,294.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Constellation Software from C$3,200.00 to C$3,500.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Desjardins increased their price objective on Constellation Software from C$3,800.00 to C$3,900.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 10th.

Constellation Software Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of CSU opened at C$2,896.47 on Wednesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is C$2,979.28 and its 200-day moving average price is C$2,765.33. The firm has a market capitalization of C$61.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.90, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 141.06. Constellation Software has a 1-year low of C$2,196.00 and a 1-year high of C$4,110.00.

Constellation Software (TSE:CSU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported C$18.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Constellation Software had a net margin of 7.57% and a return on equity of 25.24%. The company had revenue of C$4.74 billion during the quarter. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Constellation Software will post 55.4616354 EPS for the current year.

Constellation Software Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 18th. Constellation Software's payout ratio is 8.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Constellation Software

In other news, insider John Edward Billowits sold 1,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$3,203.00, for a total value of C$3,843,600.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 12,370 shares of the company's stock, valued at C$39,621,110. This represents a 8.84% decrease in their position. 5.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Constellation Software

Constellation Software is an international provider of market-leading software and services to a number of industries. Our mission is to acquire, manage and build market-leading software businesses that develop specialized, mission-critical software solutions to address the specific needs of our particular industries. Our company was founded in 1995 to assemble a portfolio of vertical market software companies that have the potential to be leaders in their particular market. Since then, we have grown rapidly through a combination of acquisitions and organic growth, and established a strong constellation of companies with a large, diverse customer base.

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