DA Davidson Reiterates "Buy" Rating for Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE)

Key Points

• DA Davidson reaffirmed a Buy rating on Guidewire and set a $246 price target, implying roughly a 56.12% upside from the prior close.
• Guidewire beat quarterly estimates (EPS $1.17 vs. $0.77; revenue $359.1M vs. $342.9M, +24% YoY) and its board approved a $500 million share buyback (about 3.1% of shares).
• The Street consensus is a "Moderate Buy" (11 Buys, 4 Holds, 1 Sell) with a $249.85 average target, while the stock trades near $157.57, leaving significant analyst-implied upside.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at DA Davidson in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $246.00 target price on the technology company's stock. DA Davidson's price objective points to a potential upside of 56.12% from the stock's previous close.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $281.00 price target on shares of Guidewire Software in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. BTIG Research raised their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $242.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Guidewire Software from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, November 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $249.85.

Guidewire Software Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWRE traded down $5.73 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $157.57. 405,181 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,817,178. The company has a market cap of $13.40 billion, a PE ratio of 71.53, a P/E/G ratio of 10.88 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 2.93, a quick ratio of 3.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $153.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $200.38. Guidewire Software has a 12-month low of $120.37 and a 12-month high of $272.60.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 5th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $359.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $342.88 million. Guidewire Software had a return on equity of 13.44% and a net margin of 14.11%.Guidewire Software's quarterly revenue was up 24.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Guidewire Software will post 0.52 EPS for the current year.

Guidewire Software announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, January 8th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to purchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 6,015 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.08, for a total transaction of $1,155,361.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 240,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,241,915.44. This trade represents a 2.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider James Winston King sold 1,860 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.00, for a total transaction of $362,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 33,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,571,890. The trade was a 5.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 42,560 shares of company stock worth $7,882,898. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Guidewire Software

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Guidewire Software by 36.9% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 10,820 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,177,000 after purchasing an additional 2,915 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in Guidewire Software by 471.3% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 497 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $100,000 after buying an additional 410 shares during the period. MidFirst Bank acquired a new position in shares of Guidewire Software during the 4th quarter valued at about $212,000. Avory & Company LLC increased its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Avory & Company LLC now owns 1,187 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $239,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software by 20.6% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 13,528 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,719,000 after acquiring an additional 2,313 shares during the period.

Guidewire Software Company Profile

Guidewire Software, Inc develops software products and cloud services for property and casualty (P&C) insurance carriers. Headquartered in San Mateo, California, the company's offerings are designed to help insurers manage the core functions of their business—policy administration, billing and claims—while supporting digital engagement, analytics and operational modernization.

Guidewire's core product portfolio is commonly known as the InsuranceSuite, which includes PolicyCenter for policy administration, BillingCenter for billing and receivables, and ClaimCenter for claims management.

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