Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Reduces Position in Guidewire Software, Inc. $GWRE

Key Points

• Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA cut its stake in Guidewire by 11.6%, selling 557,620 shares and now owning 4,258,486 shares (about 5.01% of the company) valued at roughly $856 million.
• Guidewire beat expectations with Q results of $1.17 EPS (vs. $0.77 est.) and $359.1M revenue (up 24% YoY), and its board approved a $500 million share repurchase program (about 3.1% of shares).
• Insiders have been net sellers recently (31,495 shares worth about $5.0M over 90 days), while analysts have trimmed targets but maintain a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with an average target of about $249.85.

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA cut its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE - Free Report) by 11.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,258,486 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 557,620 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 5.01% of Guidewire Software worth $855,998,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Guidewire Software by 620.0% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 144 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter.

Guidewire Software Stock Down 4.9%

GWRE stock opened at $118.22 on Friday. Guidewire Software, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $115.57 and a fifty-two week high of $272.60. The business's 50-day moving average is $143.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $186.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 2.93 and a current ratio of 2.93. The company has a market cap of $10.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.74, a P/E/G ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 1.05.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.40. Guidewire Software had a return on equity of 13.44% and a net margin of 14.11%.The company had revenue of $359.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $342.88 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.51 earnings per share. Guidewire Software's revenue was up 24.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Guidewire Software declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, January 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to buy up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Guidewire Software

In other news, President John P. Mullen sold 6,576 shares of the firm'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 $1,077,543.36. Following the transaction, the president owned 135,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,187,791.02. This trade represents a 4.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 4,737 shares of the firm'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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 221,206 shares in the company, valued at $36,246,815.16. This trade represents a 2.10% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,495 shares of company stock valued at $5,001,274. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GWRE has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Zacks Research raised Guidewire Software from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. 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 MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $249.85.

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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