Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Guidewire Software Call Options (NYSE:GWRE)

Key Points

• Unusually large call option activity hit Guidewire Software, with traders buying 1,297 call options on Wednesday — a massive jump of 1,563% versus the average daily volume of 78.
• Insiders have been selling shares, including President John P. Mullen and CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper, and company insiders sold 32,479 shares worth about $5.0 million over the past three months.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish despite recent price-target cuts, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $249.85; Guidewire also recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations.

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders purchased 1,297 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 1,563% compared to the average daily volume of 78 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, President John P. Mullen sold 6,576 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.86, for a total transaction of $1,077,543.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 135,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,187,791.02. This trade represents a 4.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 4,757 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.72, for a total value of $755,031.04. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 67,996 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,792,325.12. The trade was a 6.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 32,479 shares of company stock worth $5,007,134. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lido Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Guidewire Software by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 28,506 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $4,263,000 after acquiring an additional 1,064 shares in the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. raised its holdings in Guidewire Software by 90.8% in the 1st quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 31,766 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $4,751,000 after acquiring an additional 15,116 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Guidewire Software by 168.6% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 18,719 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,800,000 after acquiring an additional 11,749 shares in the last quarter. DUTCH ASSET Corp raised its holdings in Guidewire Software by 14.3% in the 1st quarter. DUTCH ASSET Corp now owns 3,240 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $485,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in Guidewire Software by 68.7% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,863 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $428,000 after acquiring an additional 1,166 shares in the last quarter.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

GWRE opened at $125.82 on Thursday. Guidewire Software has a 12-month low of $115.57 and a 12-month high of $272.60. The stock has a market cap of $10.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.19 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a 50 day moving average of $145.21 and a 200-day moving average of $170.76. The company has a quick ratio of 2.93, a current ratio of 2.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 5th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.40. Guidewire Software had a return on equity of 13.44% and a net margin of 14.11%.The company had revenue of $359.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $342.88 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.51 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 24.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Guidewire Software will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on GWRE. BTIG Research increased their price objective on Guidewire Software from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 6th. Zacks Research upgraded Guidewire Software from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $249.85.

Guidewire Software Company Profile

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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