Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) Upgraded by BTIG Research to “Strong-Buy” Rating

BTIG Research upgraded shares of Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on GWRE. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Guidewire Software from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Guidewire Software from $242.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Guidewire Software from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. DA Davidson upgraded shares of Guidewire Software from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $246.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $275.00 price objective (up previously from $255.00) on shares of Guidewire Software in a research report on Friday, September 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $271.29.

Guidewire Software Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:GWRE opened at $193.85 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $223.17 and its 200-day moving average is $228.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 3.48 and a current ratio of 3.48. Guidewire Software has a 52 week low of $165.08 and a 52 week high of $272.60. The company has a market capitalization of $16.48 billion, a PE ratio of 184.62, a P/E/G ratio of 12.68 and a beta of 1.08.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 3rd. The technology company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.66. The firm had revenue of $332.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $316.62 million. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 10.15%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 26.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.43 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Guidewire Software will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Guidewire Software

In other news, CAO David Franklin Peterson sold 358 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.08, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 2.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, President John P. Mullen sold 7,975 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.08, for a total transaction of $1,531,838.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president owned 141,983 shares in the company, valued at $27,272,094.64. This represents a 5.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 49,719 shares of company stock valued at $10,538,481 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Guidewire Software

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GWRE. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Guidewire Software in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Guidewire Software in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Guidewire Software during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Guidewire Software during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000.

About Guidewire Software

Guidewire Software, Inc provides a platform for property and casualty (P&C) insurers worldwide. The company offers Guidewire InsuranceSuite Cloud, such as PolicyCenter Cloud, BillingCenter Cloud, and ClaimCenter Cloud applications. It also provides Guidewire InsuranceNow, a cloud-based platform that offers policy, billing, and claims management functionality to insurers; and Guidewire InsuranceSuite for Self-Managed.