Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) Shares Up 6.3% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Guidewire Software shares rose 6.3% on Friday, with the stock trading as high as $118.86 after closing at $110.10 the prior day.
• Several Wall Street firms trimmed their price targets on Guidewire, but most kept bullish ratings. The consensus among analysts remains a Moderate Buy, with an average target price of $221.36.
• The company recently reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.82 versus estimates of $0.74 and revenue of $372.54 million, up 26.9% year over year.

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) shot up 6.3% on Friday . The company traded as high as $118.86 and last traded at $117.0550. Approximately 98,379 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 94% from the average daily volume of 1,671,237 shares. The stock had previously closed at $110.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GWRE. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Guidewire Software from $255.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Citizens Jmp reduced their price objective on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $220.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 5th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Guidewire Software from $246.00 to $222.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Guidewire Software from $225.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Guidewire Software has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $221.36.

Guidewire Software Trading Up 9.6%

The firm has a market cap of $10.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.88 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a current ratio of 2.44. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $132.94 and a 200-day moving average of $150.80.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 4th. The technology company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $372.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $355.92 million. Guidewire Software had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 11.25%.The firm's revenue was up 26.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.88 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 1,200 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.67, for a total value of $126,804.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 198,576 shares in the company, valued at $20,983,525.92. This trade represents a 0.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider James Winston King sold 999 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.74, for a total transaction of $118,621.26. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 31,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,764,295.48. The trade was a 3.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,709 shares of company stock worth $3,740,332. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Guidewire Software

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in Guidewire Software during the 4th quarter worth $202,405,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software by 547.3% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,180,334 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $176,537,000 after purchasing an additional 997,992 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 405.1% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 538,303 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $126,743,000 after purchasing an additional 431,725 shares in the last quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 39.0% during the fourth quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,445,206 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $290,501,000 after purchasing an additional 405,850 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Guidewire Software by 179.0% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 628,759 shares of the technology company's stock worth $94,037,000 after buying an additional 403,370 shares in the last quarter.

About Guidewire Software

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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