Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Decreases Stake in Guidewire Software, Inc. $GWRE

Key Points

• Artisan Partners cut its stake in Guidewire Software by 20.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 266,827 shares and leaving it with 1.06 million shares worth about $213.3 million.
• Guidewire reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.82 versus estimates of $0.74 and revenue of $372.5 million, up 26.9% year over year.
• Despite the strong earnings, the stock has been under pressure: shares were trading at $117.50, near the 52-week low of $113.67, while several analysts trimmed price targets even as the consensus rating remained “Moderate Buy.”

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lowered its position in shares of Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE - Free Report) by 20.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,060,968 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 266,827 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership owned about 1.25% of Guidewire Software worth $213,265,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd boosted its holdings in Guidewire Software by 901.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 9,110 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,094,000 after acquiring an additional 8,200 shares during the period. Comerica Bank boosted its holdings in Guidewire Software by 52.0% in the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 78,659 shares of the technology company's stock worth $15,811,000 after acquiring an additional 26,912 shares during the period. BDF Gestion purchased a new position in Guidewire Software in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,803,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Guidewire Software by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 520,390 shares of the technology company's stock worth $119,617,000 after acquiring an additional 17,104 shares during the period. Finally, Fieldview Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Guidewire Software in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,862,000.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

Shares of GWRE opened at $117.50 on Wednesday. The business's 50 day moving average is $136.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $155.98. Guidewire Software, Inc. has a 52-week low of $113.67 and a 52-week high of $272.60. The firm has a market cap of $9.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.51 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 2.44, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The technology company reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.08. Guidewire Software had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 11.25%.The company had revenue of $372.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $355.92 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.88 EPS. Guidewire Software's quarterly revenue was up 26.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on GWRE. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Guidewire Software from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 5th. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Guidewire Software in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Guidewire Software from $255.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 5th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Guidewire Software currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $229.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Guidewire Software

In other Guidewire Software news, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 2,594 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.74, for a total value of $308,011.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 63,467 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,536,071.58. This represents a 3.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 5,830 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.74, for a total value of $692,254.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 199,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,721,402.24. This represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 28,361 shares of company stock valued at $3,657,757 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

About Guidewire Software

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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