Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) Hits New 1-Year High After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $169.29 and last traded at $168.28, with a volume of 142116 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $143.93.

The technology company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.08. Guidewire Software had a negative net margin of 1.11% and a negative return on equity of 1.19%. The business had revenue of $291.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $283.84 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.30 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWRE has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $133.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Guidewire Software from $109.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. JMP Securities upped their target price on Guidewire Software from $141.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Guidewire Software from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Guidewire Software from $146.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $158.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 3,017 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.54, for a total transaction of $405,907.18. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 63,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,540,464.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Guidewire Software news, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 5,582 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.54, for a total value of $751,002.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 239,793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,261,750.22. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 3,017 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.54, for a total transaction of $405,907.18. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 63,479 shares in the company, valued at $8,540,464.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 13,064 shares of company stock worth $1,782,775. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its stake in Guidewire Software by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 33,678 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,672,000 after buying an additional 3,355 shares during the last quarter. Teca Partners LP grew its position in shares of Guidewire Software by 31.1% during the fourth quarter. Teca Partners LP now owns 195,599 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $21,328,000 after acquiring an additional 46,453 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software in the 4th quarter worth about $204,000. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its position in Guidewire Software by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,874,758 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $335,513,000 after purchasing an additional 115,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Guidewire Software during the 1st quarter valued at about $417,000.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $13.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1,244.00 and a beta of 1.18. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $144.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $128.12.

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.