Fred Alger Management LLC Decreases Position in Guidewire Software, Inc. $GWRE

Fred Alger Management LLC trimmed its position in Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) by 17.1% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 184,555 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 38,101 shares during the quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC’s holdings in Guidewire Software were worth $42,422,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of GWRE. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Guidewire Software during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Guidewire Software in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 620.0% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 144 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software during the third quarter worth approximately $35,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWRE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research downgraded Guidewire Software from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $249.85.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

Shares of Guidewire Software stock opened at $160.56 on Monday. Guidewire Software, Inc. has a one year low of $120.37 and a one year high of $272.60. The company has a market cap of $13.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.98, a PEG ratio of 7.28 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 2.93 and a current ratio of 2.93. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $150.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $198.84.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.40. Guidewire Software had a return on equity of 13.44% and a net margin of 14.11%.The company had revenue of $359.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $342.88 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 24.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 0.52 EPS for the current year.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 6,015 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.08, for a total transaction of $1,155,361.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 240,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,241,915.44. This trade represents a 2.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 4,757 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.72, for a total transaction of $755,031.04. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 67,996 shares in the company, valued at $10,792,325.12. This trade represents a 6.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 45,917 shares of company stock worth $8,351,853. 0.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Guidewire Software

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.