Guidewire Software Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:GWRE)

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors acquired 1,297 call options on the company. This is an increase of 1,563% compared to the average volume of 78 call options.

Guidewire Software Stock Up 0.1%

GWRE stock traded up $0.18 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $250.93. 660,704 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 943,823. The company has a quick ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $208.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $196.64. Guidewire Software has a fifty-two week low of $131.82 and a fifty-two week high of $263.20. The stock has a market cap of $21.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 697.03, a P/E/G ratio of 37.21 and a beta of 1.15.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, June 3rd. The technology company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.41. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 2.91% and a return on equity of 2.38%. The firm had revenue of $293.51 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $286.40 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.26 EPS. The company's revenue was up 22.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Guidewire Software will post 0.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on GWRE shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Guidewire Software from $230.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $281.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Guidewire Software from $230.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Guidewire Software from $231.00 to $271.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Guidewire Software from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $247.00.

Insider Transactions at Guidewire Software

In other Guidewire Software news, President John P. Mullen sold 6,116 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.41, for a total value of $1,158,431.56. Following the sale, the president now owns 166,330 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,504,565.30. This trade represents a 3.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael C. Keller sold 1,848 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.03, for a total value of $341,935.44. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,270 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,270,318.10. This represents a 13.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 28,671 shares of company stock valued at $5,592,148 over the last three months. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,436,873 shares of the technology company's stock worth $747,968,000 after buying an additional 1,009,966 shares during the period. Linonia Partnership LP grew its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 41.8% in the first quarter. Linonia Partnership LP now owns 3,396,310 shares of the technology company's stock worth $636,333,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,709 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Guidewire Software by 70.4% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,427,104 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $267,382,000 after purchasing an additional 589,424 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. bought a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software in the 1st quarter worth approximately $85,453,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in shares of Guidewire Software by 79.4% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 946,158 shares of the technology company's stock worth $159,503,000 after buying an additional 418,642 shares during the last quarter.

Guidewire Software Company Profile

Guidewire Software, Inc provides a platform for property and casualty (P&C) insurers worldwide. The company offers Guidewire InsuranceSuite Cloud, such as PolicyCenter Cloud, BillingCenter Cloud, and ClaimCenter Cloud applications. It also provides Guidewire InsuranceNow, a cloud-based platform that offers policy, billing, and claims management functionality to insurers; and Guidewire InsuranceSuite for Self-Managed.