Cwm LLC Reduces Stake in Guidewire Software, Inc. $GWRE

Key Points

• Cwm LLC cut its stake in Guidewire by 36.5% in Q4, selling 11,605 shares and leaving it with 20,167 shares valued at about $4.05 million.
• Company insiders have been selling recently—including CFO Jeffrey Cooper and CEO Michael Rosenbaum—and insiders sold a total of 31,279 shares worth roughly $4.87 million in the past three months.
• Guidewire beat quarterly estimates (EPS $1.17 vs. $0.77) and its board approved a $500 million share buyback, while analysts' average target is about $249.85 despite the stock trading near $142.77.

Cwm LLC reduced its stake in shares of Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE - Free Report) by 36.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,167 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 11,605 shares during the period. Cwm LLC's holdings in Guidewire Software were worth $4,054,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Guidewire Software in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Amundi grew its holdings in Guidewire Software by 703.0% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 36,093 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $8,220,000 after purchasing an additional 31,598 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Guidewire Software in the second quarter worth $305,000. Bank of Nova Scotia increased its position in Guidewire Software by 30.9% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 2,024 shares of the technology company's stock worth $477,000 after buying an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 30.6% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,911 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,156,000 after buying an additional 1,152 shares during the period.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 4,757 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.72, for a total transaction of $755,031.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 67,996 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,792,325.12. This trade represents a 6.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 4,737 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.86, for a total value of $776,204.82. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 221,206 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $36,246,815.16. The trade was a 2.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 31,279 shares of company stock worth $4,867,874 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Guidewire Software Price Performance

GWRE stock opened at $142.77 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $144.12 and a 200-day moving average of $180.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.08 and a beta of 1.05. Guidewire Software, Inc. has a 12 month low of $115.57 and a 12 month high of $272.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.93, a quick ratio of 2.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.40. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 14.11% and a return on equity of 13.44%. The business had revenue of $359.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $342.88 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.51 EPS. Guidewire Software's revenue was up 24.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Guidewire Software declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, January 8th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research raised Guidewire Software from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on Guidewire Software from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $246.00 target price on shares of Guidewire Software in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $249.85.

Guidewire Software 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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