BTIG Research Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) Stock

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) had its target price increased by BTIG Research from $175.00 to $230.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the technology company’s stock. BTIG Research’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 14.98% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Citizens Jmp decreased their price objective on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $220.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 5th. Zacks Research downgraded Guidewire Software from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Guidewire Software from $255.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $258.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $223.93.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

Shares of GWRE opened at $200.04 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a current ratio of 2.44. The company has a market capitalization of $16.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 108.13 and a beta of 0.96. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $156.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $145.25. Guidewire Software has a 1 year low of $102.30 and a 1 year high of $272.60.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The technology company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $372.54 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $355.92 million. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 12.62%. Guidewire Software’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.88 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Guidewire Software will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Guidewire Software

In related news, President John P. Mullen sold 14,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.00, for a total value of $2,664,000.00. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 116,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,592,275. This trade represents a 10.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 1,200 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.44, for a total value of $245,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 186,576 shares in the company, valued at $38,143,597.44. The trade was a 0.64% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 47,093 shares of company stock valued at $7,185,902 over the last quarter. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Guidewire Software

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in shares of Guidewire Software in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,116,000. Vancity Investment Management Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software by 24.0% during the 2nd quarter. Vancity Investment Management Ltd now owns 8,525 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,049,000 after purchasing an additional 1,651 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in Guidewire Software by 11,874.0% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 11,757,428 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,446,752,000 after purchasing an additional 11,659,237 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Guidewire Software by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,761 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $340,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaGrep UK Ltd purchased a new position in Guidewire Software in the second quarter valued at approximately $495,000.

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.