Riverbridge Partners LLC Sells 34,645 Shares of Guidewire Software, Inc. $GWRE

Key Points

• Riverbridge Partners cut its stake in Guidewire by 12.2%, selling 34,645 shares and ending the quarter with 248,875 shares valued at about $50.0 million.
• Company insiders have been selling recently — 31,695 shares worth roughly $5.11 million sold in the past 90 days, including James Winston King (1,001 shares) and President John P. Mullen (6,576 shares) — leaving insiders with 0.46% ownership.
• Guidewire reported a Q earnings beat (EPS $1.17 vs. $0.77 est.) and 24% revenue growth to $359.1 million, and its board approved a $500 million share buyback program (up to ~3.1% of shares).

Riverbridge Partners LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE - Free Report) by 12.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 248,875 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 34,645 shares during the quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC owned 0.29% of Guidewire Software worth $50,026,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GWRE. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Guidewire Software in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Guidewire Software during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new position in Guidewire Software in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in Guidewire Software in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software by 620.0% in 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 period.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider James Winston King sold 1,001 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.86, for a total transaction of $164,023.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 32,701 shares in the company, valued at $5,358,385.86. This represents a 2.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, President John P. Mullen sold 6,576 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.86, for a total value of $1,077,543.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the president owned 135,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,187,791.02. The trade was a 4.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,695 shares of company stock worth $5,106,836. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Zacks Research raised shares of Guidewire Software from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Guidewire Software from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their price target on Guidewire Software from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $249.85.

Guidewire Software Price Performance

NYSE GWRE opened at $151.34 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.93, a current ratio of 2.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Guidewire Software, Inc. has a 12-month low of $120.37 and a 12-month high of $272.60. The company has a market capitalization of $12.81 billion, a PE ratio of 68.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.77 and a beta of 1.06. The firm's 50 day moving average is $146.35 and its 200-day moving average is $194.93.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The technology company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $359.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $342.88 million. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 14.11% and a return on equity of 13.44%. The firm's revenue was up 24.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

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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