Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) Shares Down 4.8% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) fell 4.8% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $174.01 and last traded at $173.7660. 114,753 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 1,594,957 shares. The stock had previously closed at $182.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on GWRE shares. Zacks Research cut shares of Guidewire Software from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 25th. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Guidewire Software in a report on Monday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $258.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their price objective on Guidewire Software from $246.00 to $222.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $220.21.

Guidewire Software Trading Down 3.9%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $137.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $140.72. The firm has a market cap of $14.61 billion, a PE ratio of 94.81 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 2.44, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The technology company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.08. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 11.25% and a return on equity of 12.62%. The company had revenue of $372.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $355.92 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.88 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 26.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider James Winston King sold 1,684 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.64, for a total transaction of $219,997.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 30,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,921,551.52. This trade represents a 5.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 1,348 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.67, for a total value of $142,443.16. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 62,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,564,114.73. The trade was a 2.12% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 30,193 shares of company stock valued at $3,854,478. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital World Investors purchased a new position in Guidewire Software in the 4th quarter worth about $202,405,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Guidewire Software by 547.3% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,180,334 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $176,537,000 after acquiring an additional 997,992 shares in the last quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC bought a new position in Guidewire Software in the 2nd quarter worth about $93,497,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Guidewire Software during the second quarter worth approximately $74,989,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 405.1% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 538,303 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $126,743,000 after acquiring an additional 431,725 shares in the last quarter.

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.