Simulations Plus (NASDAQ:SLP) Shares Gap Down Following Insider Selling

Simulations Plus, Inc. (NASDAQ:SLP) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock had previously closed at $46.86, but opened at $42.85. Simulations Plus shares last traded at $40.68, with a volume of 73,008 shares changing hands.

Specifically, Director Daniel L. Weiner sold 3,250 shares of Simulations Plus stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.31, for a total transaction of $157,007.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,759 shares in the company, valued at approximately $423,147.29. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Daniel L. Weiner sold 3,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.31, for a total value of $157,007.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,759 shares in the company, valued at approximately $423,147.29. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Walter S. Woltosz sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.71, for a total transaction of $934,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,540,857 shares in the company, valued at $165,393,430.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 44,500 shares of company stock valued at $2,072,198 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 20.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SLP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Craig Hallum reissued a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 target price on shares of Simulations Plus in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Simulations Plus from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, William Blair initiated coverage on shares of Simulations Plus in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company.

Simulations Plus Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $797.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.26 and a beta of 0.72.

Simulations Plus (NASDAQ:SLP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 2nd. The technology company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.04. Simulations Plus had a return on equity of 7.80% and a net margin of 14.36%. The company had revenue of $18.54 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.92 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.20 earnings per share. Simulations Plus’s revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Simulations Plus, Inc. will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Simulations Plus Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 29th. Simulations Plus’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.28%.

Institutional Trading of Simulations Plus

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SLP. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Simulations Plus during the first quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Simulations Plus in the 1st quarter valued at $70,000. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Simulations Plus in the 1st quarter valued at $204,000. Canton Hathaway LLC raised its holdings in shares of Simulations Plus by 25.0% during the 4th quarter. Canton Hathaway LLC now owns 5,000 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new stake in shares of Simulations Plus during the 1st quarter worth $208,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.08% of the company’s stock.

About Simulations Plus

Simulations Plus, Inc develops drug discovery and development software for modeling and simulation, and prediction of molecular properties utilizing artificial intelligence and machine learning based technology worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Software and Services. It offers GastroPlus, which simulates the absorption and drug interaction of compounds administered to humans and animals; and DDDPlus and MembranePlus simulation products.