Zacks Research Downgrades Blackbaud (NASDAQ:BLKB) to Hold

Blackbaud (NASDAQ:BLKB) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on BLKB. Raymond James Financial set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Blackbaud in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird set a $60.00 price objective on Blackbaud in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $50.00 price target on shares of Blackbaud in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Evercore set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Blackbaud in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Blackbaud in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $56.25.

Blackbaud Stock Performance

Shares of Blackbaud stock opened at $35.88 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $1.65 billion, a PE ratio of 15.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.18. Blackbaud has a 1 year low of $33.95 and a 1 year high of $74.88. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $44.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.78, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Blackbaud (NASDAQ:BLKB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The technology company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. Blackbaud had a return on equity of 175.57% and a net margin of 10.19%.The company had revenue of $295.26 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $292.71 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Blackbaud has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.150-5.250 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Blackbaud will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Blackbaud

In related news, EVP David J. Benjamin sold 14,349 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.47, for a total transaction of $681,147.03. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 73,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,471,196.28. This trade represents a 16.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kevin P. Gregoire sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.02, for a total value of $100,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 135,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,762,403.88. The trade was a 1.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 39,801 shares of company stock worth $1,893,874 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Blackbaud

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BLKB. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackbaud in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,287,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Blackbaud by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,516,432 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $354,762,000 after acquiring an additional 706,695 shares in the last quarter. Greenhouse Funds LLLP increased its holdings in Blackbaud by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. Greenhouse Funds LLLP now owns 802,904 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $51,635,000 after purchasing an additional 96,457 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of Blackbaud in the third quarter valued at about $2,356,000. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new position in shares of Blackbaud during the third quarter worth about $10,586,000. 94.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Blackbaud

Blackbaud, Inc is a leading provider of cloud software, services and data intelligence solutions designed specifically for the social good community. The company’s main offerings include fundraising and relationship management platforms, financial management systems, grant and award management tools, and advanced analytics. Its flagship products—such as Raiser’s Edge NXT, Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT and Blackbaud NetCommunity—help nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, healthcare providers and foundations streamline donor engagement, optimize financial operations and measure program impact.

Founded in 1981 and headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina, Blackbaud has grown from a small technology startup into a global specialist in nonprofit software.