Freshworks Inc. $FRSH Stock: Alphabet Inc. Trims Stake

Key Points

• Alphabet cut its Freshworks stake by 11.5%, selling 1.87 million shares, but still held 14.34 million shares—5.49% of the company—valued at about $183.4 million.
• Other institutional investors increased holdings, and institutions collectively owned 75.58% of Freshworks.
• Freshworks beat quarterly earnings estimates with EPS of $0.22 versus $0.18 expected; revenue rose 14.1% year over year. Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with a $15.92 average price target.

Alphabet Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Freshworks Inc. (NASDAQ:FRSH - Free Report) by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,336,643 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,870,000 shares during the period. Freshworks comprises approximately 0.2% of Alphabet Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Alphabet Inc. owned 5.49% of Freshworks worth $183,366,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in Freshworks by 79.1% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 4,576,000 shares of the company's stock worth $36,745,000 after purchasing an additional 2,021,412 shares in the last quarter. Walleye Capital LLC lifted its stake in Freshworks by 2,480.8% during the first quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 1,247,655 shares of the company's stock worth $10,019,000 after purchasing an additional 1,199,311 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its stake in Freshworks by 403.4% during the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,444,124 shares of the company's stock worth $11,596,000 after purchasing an additional 1,157,277 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Freshworks in the first quarter worth $8,561,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Freshworks by 7,093.0% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 726,132 shares of the company's stock worth $5,831,000 after purchasing an additional 716,037 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.58% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Philippa Lawrence sold 52,767 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.25, for a total value of $699,162.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 389,296 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,158,172. This represents a 11.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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. Corporate insiders own 8.54% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FRSH has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Freshworks from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Freshworks in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of Freshworks in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Freshworks from $14.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of Freshworks from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $15.92.

Freshworks Stock Performance

Shares of FRSH opened at $12.67 on Friday. Freshworks Inc. has a 1 year low of $6.79 and a 1 year high of $15.51. The company has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.39 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $13.33 and a 200-day moving average of $10.51.

Freshworks (NASDAQ:FRSH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $245.43 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $245.06 million. Freshworks had a net margin of 22.28% and a return on equity of 8.01%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.16 EPS. Analysts predict that Freshworks Inc. will post 0.09 EPS for the current year.

About Freshworks

Freshworks Inc. develops cloud-based software designed to help businesses manage customer and employee experiences. Its products support customer service, sales, marketing and IT service management, with tools for handling support requests, communicating with customers and managing internal service workflows. The company's offerings include Freshdesk for customer support, Freshservice for IT and employee service management, and Freshsales for sales teams. Freshworks also provides customer messaging and marketing products, along with artificial intelligence features that assist with service and support tasks.

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