Montanaro Asset Management Ltd Sells 21,600 Shares of ANSYS, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANSS)

Montanaro Asset Management Ltd decreased its stake in shares of ANSYS, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANSS - Free Report) by 23.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 71,375 shares of the software maker's stock after selling 21,600 shares during the quarter. ANSYS comprises 4.9% of Montanaro Asset Management Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 6th largest position. Montanaro Asset Management Ltd owned 0.08% of ANSYS worth $25,901,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Ieq Capital LLC increased its holdings in ANSYS by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 2,853 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $1,035,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of ANSYS by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,071 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $752,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance lifted its stake in ANSYS by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,523 shares of the software maker's stock worth $553,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in ANSYS by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 1,038 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $377,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Balentine LLC grew its position in ANSYS by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 2,067 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $615,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.39% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ANSS shares. Barclays increased their target price on shares of ANSYS from $314.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. StockNews.com began coverage on ANSYS in a research note on Friday. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $345.00 target price on shares of ANSYS in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ANSYS currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $320.00.

ANSYS Stock Performance

ANSYS stock traded down $1.80 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $326.79. 314,511 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 636,598. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $333.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $326.52. ANSYS, Inc. has a twelve month low of $258.01 and a twelve month high of $364.31. The firm has a market cap of $28.53 billion, a PE ratio of 65.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.19 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 2.80 and a current ratio of 2.80.

ANSYS (NASDAQ:ANSS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The software maker reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.93 by ($0.54). The company had revenue of $466.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $549.85 million. ANSYS had a return on equity of 10.45% and a net margin of 19.51%. ANSYS's revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.45 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that ANSYS, Inc. will post 7.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Glenda Dorchak sold 150 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.08, for a total transaction of $51,312.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,049 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,043,001.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

ANSYS Profile

ANSYS, Inc develops and markets engineering simulation software and services for engineers, designers, researchers, and students in the United States, Japan, Germany, China, Hong Kong, South Korea, rest of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally. It offers structural analysis product suite that provides simulation tools for product design and optimization; the Ansys Mechanical product, an element analysis software; LS-DYNA solver for multiphysics simulation; and power analysis and optimization software suite.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.