Prudential PLC Reduces Position in Synopsys, Inc. (NASDAQ:SNPS)

Key Points

• Prudential PLC has reduced its holdings in Synopsys, Inc. by 13.7% in the 1st quarter, ending the period with 12,433 shares valued at approximately $5.33 million.
• Several institutional investors have increased their stakes in Synopsys, with Cornerstone Planning Group LLC growing its position by 275% during the same period.
• Synopsys reported $3.67 EPS for the recent quarter, surpassing analyst expectations, with a 10.3% increase in revenue year-over-year.

Prudential PLC cut its holdings in shares of Synopsys, Inc. (NASDAQ:SNPS - Free Report) by 13.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,433 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 1,973 shares during the period. Prudential PLC's holdings in Synopsys were worth $5,332,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of SNPS. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Synopsys by 275.0% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 60 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its stake in shares of Synopsys by 441.7% during the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 65 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Synopsys during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Synopsys during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Synopsys by 33.3% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 104 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. 85.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Synopsys Stock Down 1.2%

NASDAQ SNPS opened at $618.57 on Thursday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $553.58 and its 200 day moving average is $496.59. The company has a current ratio of 7.02, a quick ratio of 6.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. Synopsys, Inc. has a 12 month low of $365.74 and a 12 month high of $651.73. The stock has a market cap of $95.98 billion, a PE ratio of 44.66, a P/E/G ratio of 4.14 and a beta of 1.15.

Synopsys (NASDAQ:SNPS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The semiconductor company reported $3.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.27. Synopsys had a return on equity of 17.09% and a net margin of 34.77%. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.00 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Synopsys, Inc. will post 10.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Shelagh Glaser sold 7,310 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $485.72, for a total value of $3,550,613.20. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 15,291 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,427,144.52. The trade was a 32.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CRO Richard S. Mahoney sold 9,010 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $471.21, for a total value of $4,245,602.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive directly owned 1,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $699,746.85. This represents a 85.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 27,686 shares of company stock valued at $13,001,048. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $660.00 price target (up from $650.00) on shares of Synopsys in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Synopsys from $540.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $715.00 price target (up from $540.00) on shares of Synopsys in a research note on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Synopsys in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $620.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $550.00 price objective on Synopsys in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $630.67.

Synopsys Profile

Synopsys, Inc provides electronic design automation software products used to design and test integrated circuits. It operates in three segments: Design Automation, Design IP, and Software Integrity. The company offers Digital and Custom IC Design solution that provides digital design implementation solutions; Verification solution that offers virtual prototyping, static and formal verification, simulation, emulation, field programmable gate array (FPGA)-based prototyping, and debug solutions; and FPGA design products that are programmed to perform specific functions.

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