Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK) was the target of a large drop in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,340,000 shares, a drop of 6.4% from the August 31st total of 3,570,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,460,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days. Approximately 1.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ADSK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Autodesk from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 30th. HSBC raised shares of Autodesk from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $242.00 to $299.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Autodesk from $239.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Autodesk from $290.00 to $313.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, DA Davidson assumed coverage on Autodesk in a report on Friday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 target price on the stock. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $290.47.

Autodesk Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of Autodesk stock opened at $271.90 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $252.43 and its 200-day moving average is $239.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.60 billion, a PE ratio of 58.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Autodesk has a 12-month low of $192.01 and a 12-month high of $279.53.

Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The software company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. Autodesk had a return on equity of 59.41% and a net margin of 18.21%. Autodesk’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Autodesk will post 5.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mary T. Mcdowell sold 550 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.33, for a total transaction of $139,331.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,016 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,857,283.28. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Autodesk news, Director Mary T. Mcdowell sold 550 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.33, for a total transaction of $139,331.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,016 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,857,283.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Steven M. Blum sold 17,344 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total transaction of $4,682,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 17,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,616,730. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 38,687 shares of company stock valued at $10,027,986. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Autodesk

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ADSK. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Autodesk during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Concord Wealth Partners purchased a new position in shares of Autodesk during the first quarter valued at $25,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new position in shares of Autodesk during the first quarter valued at $25,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Autodesk during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Autodesk during the second quarter valued at $26,000. 90.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Autodesk Company Profile

Autodesk, Inc provides 3D design, engineering, and entertainment technology solutions worldwide. The company offers AutoCAD Civil 3D, a surveying, design, analysis, and documentation solution for civil engineering, including land development, transportation, and environmental projects; BuildingConnected, a SaaS preconstruction solution; AutoCAD, a software for professional design, drafting, detailing, and visualization; AutoCAD LT, a drafting and detailing software; computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) software for computer numeric control machining, inspection, and modelling for manufacturing; Fusion 360, a 3D CAD, CAM, and computer-aided engineering tool; and Industry Collections tools for professionals in architecture, engineering and construction, product design and manufacturing, and media and entertainment collection industries.