Aspen Technology (NASDAQ:AZPN) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

Equities researchers at StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Aspen Technology (NASDAQ:AZPN) in a research report issued on Thursday. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the technology company’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on AZPN. Berenberg Bank downgraded Aspen Technology from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Aspen Technology from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Aspen Technology from $217.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Loop Capital raised their price target on shares of Aspen Technology from $204.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Aspen Technology from $225.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.00.

Aspen Technology Price Performance

AZPN opened at $246.88 on Thursday. Aspen Technology has a 1 year low of $171.25 and a 1 year high of $249.91. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $236.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $215.70. The firm has a market cap of $15.62 billion, a PE ratio of -425.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.76.

Aspen Technology (NASDAQ:AZPN) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.39 by ($0.54). Aspen Technology had a positive return on equity of 2.81% and a negative net margin of 3.26%. The firm had revenue of $215.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $265.04 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.96 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Aspen Technology will post 6.68 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aspen Technology

In other news, Director Jr. Robert M. Whelan sold 1,000 shares of Aspen Technology stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.10, for a total transaction of $219,100.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,540 shares in the company, valued at $1,871,114. This trade represents a 10.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aspen Technology

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. increased its position in Aspen Technology by 38.5% in the second quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 553,862 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $110,014,000 after buying an additional 153,897 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aspen Technology in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $290,880,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Aspen Technology by 26.5% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 524,604 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $104,199,000 after acquiring an additional 109,783 shares during the period. American Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Aspen Technology by 116.9% during the 3rd quarter. American Capital Management Inc. now owns 195,271 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $46,635,000 after acquiring an additional 105,254 shares during the period. Finally, Clean Energy Transition LLP purchased a new position in Aspen Technology during the first quarter valued at approximately $22,110,000. 45.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Aspen Technology Company Profile

Aspen Technology, Inc provides industrial software that focuses on helping customers in asset-intensive industries worldwide. The company’s solutions address complex environments where it is critical to optimize the asset design, operation, and maintenance lifecycle. Its software is used in performance engineering, modeling and design, supply chain management, predictive and prescriptive maintenance, digital grid management, and industrial data management.