Bentley Systems (NASDAQ:BSY) Price Target Raised to $63.00 at Piper Sandler

Key Points

• Piper Sandler has increased its target price for Bentley Systems (NASDAQ:BSY) from $57.00 to $63.00, indicating a potential upside of 15.95% from the current stock price.
• Bentley Systems reported a 10.2% year-over-year revenue increase for the last quarter, with earnings per share surpassing analysts' estimates at $0.32.
• Recent insider transactions included notable sales, with Director Keith A. Bentley selling 150,000 shares at an average price of $55.54.

Bentley Systems (NASDAQ:BSY - Free Report) had its target price boosted by Piper Sandler from $57.00 to $63.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Bentley Systems from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Bentley Systems from $50.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $64.00 target price on Bentley Systems and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Bentley Systems from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Bentley Systems from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.60.

Bentley Systems Price Performance

Bentley Systems stock traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $53.49. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,589,018 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,630,579. Bentley Systems has a 52 week low of $36.51 and a 52 week high of $59.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $54.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.66. The stock has a market cap of $15.62 billion, a PE ratio of 67.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.35 and a beta of 1.10.

Bentley Systems (NASDAQ:BSY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.03. Bentley Systems had a return on equity of 28.41% and a net margin of 17.91%. The firm had revenue of $364.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $363.51 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.31 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Bentley Systems will post 0.88 EPS for the current year.

Bentley Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 3rd. Bentley Systems's payout ratio is 35.44%.

Insider Transactions at Bentley Systems

In related news, Director Keith A. Bentley sold 150,000 shares of Bentley Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.54, for a total value of $8,331,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,859,327 shares of the company's stock, valued at $214,347,021.58. The trade was a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Raymond B. Bentley sold 122,114 shares of Bentley Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.70, for a total value of $6,191,179.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 15,347,424 shares in the company, valued at approximately $778,114,396.80. This represents a 0.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,189,869 shares of company stock worth $60,880,388. Insiders own 20.56% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bentley Systems

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of Bentley Systems by 37.6% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 702 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bentley Systems by 19.3% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,305 shares of the company's stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bentley Systems by 3.7% in the first quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,471 shares of the company's stock worth $333,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the period. Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bentley Systems by 0.5% in the first quarter. Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc. now owns 64,171 shares of the company's stock worth $2,524,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bentley Systems by 3.5% in the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,438 shares of the company's stock worth $371,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares during the period. 44.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Bentley Systems

Bentley Systems, Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, provides infrastructure engineering software solutions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. The company offers open modeling engineering applications, such as MicroStation, OpenBridge, OpenBuildings, OpenCities, OpenComms, OpenFlows, OpenPlant, OpenRail, OpenRoads, OpenSite, OpenTower, OpenTunnel, OpenUtilities, and OpenWindowPower; and open simulation engineering applications, including ADINA, AutoPIPE, CUBE, DYNAMEQ, EMME, LEGION, Power Line Systems, RAM, SACS, SPIDA, and STAAD; and geoprofessional applications for modeling and simulation of near and deep subsurface conditions, including AGS, Central, GeoStudio, Imago, Leapfrog, MX Deposit, Oasis montaj, OpenGround, and PLAXIS.