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

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders bought 1,297 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,563% compared to the typical volume of 78 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on GWRE shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $235.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $199.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Guidewire Software from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $271.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $248.31.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

GWRE traded down $5.69 during trading on Friday, hitting $219.44. The stock had a trading volume of 611,491 shares, compared to its average volume of 971,643. The firm has a market cap of $18.47 billion, a PE ratio of 548.60, a P/E/G ratio of 19.52 and a beta of 1.16. Guidewire Software has a 12 month low of $132.01 and a 12 month high of $263.20. The company has a current ratio of 3.23, a quick ratio of 3.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $228.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $204.60.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, June 3rd. The technology company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $293.51 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $286.40 million. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 3.04% and a return on equity of 6.96%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 22.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.26 EPS. Analysts expect that Guidewire Software will post 0.52 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, President John P. Mullen sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.05, for a total value of $705,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president owned 146,489 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,432,239.45. This trade represents a 2.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 1,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.50, for a total transaction of $359,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 245,993 shares of the company's stock, valued at $63,097,204.50. This represents a 0.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,860 shares of company stock valued at $4,214,136 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Guidewire Software by 24.9% during the second quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,967 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,587,000 after buying an additional 1,390 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Guidewire Software by 362.7% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 133,806 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $31,505,000 after buying an additional 104,890 shares during the last quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC increased its stake in Guidewire Software by 5.6% in the second quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 1,511 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $348,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Guidewire Software by 4.0% in the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,920 shares of the technology company's stock worth $7,584,000 after purchasing an additional 1,262 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Longboard Asset Management LP acquired a new position in Guidewire Software in the second quarter worth about $211,000.

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.