Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases Shares of 15,482 AudioEye, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEYE)

Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new position in AudioEye, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEYE) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 15,482 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $363,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC increased its position in AudioEye by 37.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 10,181 shares of the company’s stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 2,788 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC purchased a new stake in AudioEye during the third quarter worth approximately $263,000. Centiva Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of AudioEye in the third quarter worth $286,000. Summit Partners Public Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AudioEye by 24.5% in the 3rd quarter. Summit Partners Public Asset Management LLC now owns 515,279 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,774,000 after acquiring an additional 101,302 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AudioEye during the 3rd quarter valued at $54,000. 51.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AEYE. HC Wainwright increased their price target on AudioEye from $28.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $35.00 target price (up previously from $25.00) on shares of AudioEye in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $30.13.

AudioEye Price Performance

AEYE opened at $15.21 on Wednesday. AudioEye, Inc. has a twelve month low of $4.52 and a twelve month high of $34.85. The firm has a market cap of $185.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -56.33, a PEG ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.15.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO David Moradi sold 14,061 shares of AudioEye stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.14, for a total value of $367,554.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,764,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $72,258,540.60. The trade was a 0.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Kelly Georgevich sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total transaction of $290,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 88,981 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,449. This trade represents a 10.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,342,859 shares of company stock worth $32,684,480 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 40.70% of the company’s stock.

AudioEye Company Profile

AudioEye, Inc provides patented, internet content publication, distribution software, and related services to Internet and other media to people regardless of their device, location, or disabilities in the United States. Its software and services enable conversion of digital content into accessible formats and allows for real time distribution to end users on any Internet connected device.