Earnest Partners LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU)

Earnest Partners LLC reduced its holdings in Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU - Free Report) by 14.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,791 shares of the software maker's stock after selling 3,824 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC's holdings in Intuit were worth $14,324,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Intuit by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,035,316 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $16,991,696,000 after buying an additional 353,185 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Intuit by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,111,097 shares of the software maker's stock worth $3,833,720,000 after acquiring an additional 132,384 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Intuit by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,296,921 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $3,329,115,000 after purchasing an additional 620,559 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Intuit during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,290,419,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Intuit by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,386,228 shares of the software maker's stock worth $1,499,744,000 after buying an additional 88,487 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on INTU. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Intuit from $800.00 to $735.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 31st. StockNews.com upgraded Intuit from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Intuit from $730.00 to $720.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Intuit from $760.00 to $714.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Intuit from $760.00 to $726.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $717.53.

Intuit Stock Up 0.7 %

NASDAQ:INTU traded up $4.32 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $627.47. 1,313,935 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,580,448. Intuit Inc. has a twelve month low of $532.65 and a twelve month high of $714.78. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $596.32 and a 200 day moving average of $616.22. The stock has a market cap of $175.42 billion, a PE ratio of 60.92, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24.

Intuit Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. Intuit's dividend payout ratio is 38.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Intuit

In related news, Director Eve B. Burton sold 1,702 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total transaction of $1,021,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 8 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,800. This represents a 99.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Scott D. Cook sold 6,446 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $604.26, for a total value of $3,895,059.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,219,900 shares in the company, valued at $3,758,436,774. This trade represents a 0.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,696 shares of company stock valued at $14,347,731 in the last quarter. 2.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Intuit

Intuit Inc provides financial management and compliance products and services for consumers, small businesses, self-employed, and accounting professionals in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Small Business & Self-Employed, Consumer, Credit Karma, and ProTax.