MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) Trading 6.5% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

MicroStrategy Incorporated (NASDAQ:MSTR)’s share price shot up 6.5% during trading on Friday after Benchmark raised their price target on the stock from $215.00 to $245.00. Benchmark currently has a buy rating on the stock. MicroStrategy traded as high as $208.07 and last traded at $206.02. 6,251,694 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 16,304,191 shares. The stock had previously closed at $193.42.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on shares of MicroStrategy from $185.00 to $173.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of MicroStrategy from $173.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of MicroStrategy from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Maxim Group lifted their price target on MicroStrategy from $183.50 to $193.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on MicroStrategy in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $194.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $212.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at MicroStrategy

In other MicroStrategy news, CEO Phong Le sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.28, for a total transaction of $6,914,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,752,007.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other MicroStrategy news, EVP Wei-Ming Shao sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.20, for a total transaction of $423,600.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,460 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $912,152. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Phong Le sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.28, for a total transaction of $6,914,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,670 shares in the company, valued at $1,752,007.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 101,838 shares of company stock valued at $13,950,265. Insiders own 13.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in MicroStrategy during the second quarter worth about $37,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in MicroStrategy by 36.4% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 30 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 8 shares during the period. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of MicroStrategy in the 1st quarter worth $55,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in MicroStrategy in the first quarter valued at $58,000. Finally, Webster Bank N. A. purchased a new stake in MicroStrategy during the first quarter valued at about $68,000. 72.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MicroStrategy Price Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $151.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $147.65. The company has a market capitalization of $38.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -32.22 and a beta of 3.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31.

MicroStrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The software maker reported ($0.57) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by ($0.48). The business had revenue of $111.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $121.99 million. MicroStrategy had a negative return on equity of 14.72% and a negative net margin of 43.69%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.15 EPS.

About MicroStrategy

MicroStrategy Incorporated provides artificial intelligence-powered enterprise analytics software and services in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally. It offers MicroStrategy ONE, which provides non-technical users with the ability to directly access novel and actionable insights for decision-making; and MicroStrategy Cloud for Government service, which offers always-on threat monitoring that meets the rigorous technical and regulatory needs of governments and financial institutions.