Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) Shares Acquired by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU - Free Report) by 15.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 100,681 shares of the software maker's stock after acquiring an additional 13,746 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Intuit were worth $63,276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of INTU. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Intuit by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,035,316 shares of the software maker's stock worth $16,991,696,000 after purchasing an additional 353,185 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Intuit by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,111,097 shares of the software maker's stock worth $3,833,720,000 after purchasing an additional 132,384 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Intuit by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,296,921 shares of the software maker's stock worth $3,329,115,000 after purchasing an additional 620,559 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Intuit during the fourth quarter worth $2,290,419,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Intuit by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,371,013 shares of the software maker's stock worth $2,118,682,000 after purchasing an additional 498,030 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.66% of the company's stock.

Intuit Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of Intuit stock traded up $8.48 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $661.31. The stock had a trading volume of 1,547,912 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,604,350. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $605.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $618.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $184.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Intuit Inc. has a 1 year low of $532.65 and a 1 year high of $714.78.

Intuit Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Intuit's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.81%.

Insider Transactions at Intuit

In other news, insider Scott D. Cook sold 6,446 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $604.26, for a total value of $3,895,059.96. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,219,900 shares in the company, valued at $3,758,436,774. This trade represents a 0.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Laura A. Fennell sold 8,163 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $612.46, for a total value of $4,999,510.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 21,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,401,849.72. This trade represents a 27.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,696 shares of company stock worth $14,347,731 in the last three months. 2.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on INTU. StockNews.com upgraded Intuit from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Intuit in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Intuit from $760.00 to $714.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. HSBC upgraded Intuit from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $699.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded Intuit from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $600.00 to $700.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $717.53.

Intuit Profile

Intuit Inc provides financial management and compliance products and services for consumers, small businesses, self-employed, and accounting professionals in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Small Business & Self-Employed, Consumer, Credit Karma, and ProTax.