Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Takes $2.57 Million Position in Appian Co. (NASDAQ:APPN)

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in Appian Co. (NASDAQ:APPN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 77,971 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,571,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Appian at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in Appian by 27.8% in the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 2,300 shares of the company's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Appian by 1,244.8% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,779 shares of the company's stock worth $125,000 after acquiring an additional 3,498 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in Appian in the 4th quarter worth approximately $181,000. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Appian in the 4th quarter worth approximately $208,000. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Appian in the 4th quarter worth approximately $249,000. 52.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Appian Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APPN traded down $0.45 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $32.69. 229,527 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 566,713. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.42 billion, a PE ratio of -25.94 and a beta of 1.83. Appian Co. has a one year low of $24.00 and a one year high of $43.33. The company's 50 day moving average is $29.51 and its 200 day moving average is $33.34.

Appian (NASDAQ:APPN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $166.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $163.27 million. Appian had a negative return on equity of 532.05% and a negative net margin of 14.95%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.24) EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Appian Co. will post -0.28 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Appian news, major shareholder Abdiel Capital Advisors, Lp sold 57,975 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.52, for a total value of $1,711,422.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 10,121,563 shares in the company, valued at $298,788,539.76. This trade represents a 0.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Albert G.W. Biddle III sold 990 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.21, for a total value of $32,877.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 29,348 shares in the company, valued at approximately $974,647.08. The trade was a 3.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 380,560 shares of company stock worth $11,124,633 over the last three months. 43.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APPN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price target on Appian from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Appian from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Appian from $28.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Barclays upped their price target on Appian from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price target on Appian from $37.00 to $34.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Appian has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $36.29.

Appian Company Profile

Appian Corporation, a software company that provides low-code design platform in the United States, Mexico, Portugal, and internationally. The company's platform offers artificial intelligence, process automation, data fabric, and process mining. It provides The Appian Platform, an integrated automation platform that enables organizations to design, automate, and optimize mission-critical business processes.