Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) Trading 1.5% Higher

Shares of Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) shot up 1.5% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $638.71 and last traded at $635.85. 205,095 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 1,237,145 shares. The stock had previously closed at $626.39.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on INTU shares. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Intuit from $700.00 to $720.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Intuit from $600.00 to $720.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Intuit from $560.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $700.00 price objective on shares of Intuit in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Intuit from $670.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $650.23.

Intuit Stock Up 1.6 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $640.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $602.03. The company has a market cap of $178.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 1.21.

Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The software maker reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.33. Intuit had a return on equity of 17.51% and a net margin of 18.35%. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Intuit Inc. will post 11.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Intuit Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were paid a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 9th. Intuit’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Intuit news, EVP Alex G. Balazs sold 280 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $636.38, for a total transaction of $178,186.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Kerry J. Mclean sold 3,692 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $663.84, for a total transaction of $2,450,897.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,233,800.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Alex G. Balazs sold 280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $636.38, for a total transaction of $178,186.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,717 shares of company stock worth $3,117,156. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Intuit

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Intuit during the third quarter worth about $25,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Intuit during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Intuit in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. West Branch Capital LLC raised its position in Intuit by 79.2% during the first quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 43 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Intuit by 119.0% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.66% of the company’s stock.

About Intuit

Intuit Inc provides financial management and compliance products and services for consumers, small businesses, self-employed, and accounting professionals in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Small Business & Self-Employed, Consumer, Credit Karma, and ProTax.