Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Sells 31,748 Shares of Guidewire Software, Inc. $GWRE

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC reduced its holdings in Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) by 5.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 539,764 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 31,748 shares during the quarter. Guidewire Software makes up 1.6% of Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in Guidewire Software were worth $124,070,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Csenge Advisory Group bought a new position in Guidewire Software in the third quarter worth about $908,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $472,000. Procyon Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $831,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Guidewire Software by 17.6% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 783 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $180,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, Kera Capital Partners Inc. grew its stake in Guidewire Software by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,361 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWRE has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Guidewire Software in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Guidewire Software from $242.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Guidewire Software from $275.00 to $250.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Guidewire Software from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $269.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO David Franklin Peterson sold 358 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.08, for a total value of $68,764.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 12,806 shares in the company, valued at $2,459,776.48. This represents a 2.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, President John P. Mullen sold 7,975 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.08, for a total value of $1,531,838.00. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 141,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,272,094.64. The trade was a 5.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 52,756 shares of company stock worth $10,779,570. 0.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Guidewire Software Trading Down 4.0%

Shares of NYSE:GWRE opened at $159.46 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $201.96 and a 200-day moving average of $220.52. The company has a current ratio of 3.48, a quick ratio of 3.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market cap of $13.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 151.87, a P/E/G ratio of 10.82 and a beta of 1.08. Guidewire Software, Inc. has a twelve month low of $158.80 and a twelve month high of $272.60.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 3rd. The technology company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. The business had revenue of $332.64 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.62 million. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 10.15%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Guidewire Software announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, January 8th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to purchase up to 3.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Guidewire Software Company Profile

Guidewire Software, Inc develops software products and cloud services for property and casualty (P&C) insurance carriers. Headquartered in San Mateo, California, the company’s offerings are designed to help insurers manage the core functions of their business—policy administration, billing and claims—while supporting digital engagement, analytics and operational modernization.

Guidewire’s core product portfolio is commonly known as the InsuranceSuite, which includes PolicyCenter for policy administration, BillingCenter for billing and receivables, and ClaimCenter for claims management.