Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) Short Interest Down 10.1% in March

Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,390,000 shares, a decline of 10.1% from the March 15th total of 3,770,000 shares. Currently, 1.3% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,250,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Intuit Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:INTU opened at $612.12 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $645.96 and a 200-day moving average of $597.57. Intuit has a 12-month low of $400.22 and a 12-month high of $671.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $171.39 billion, a PE ratio of 62.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 1.21.

Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) last released 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.05 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Intuit will post 11.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Intuit Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. Intuit’s dividend payout ratio is 36.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on INTU shares. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Intuit from $678.00 to $712.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Intuit from $700.00 to $775.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Intuit from $560.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Intuit from $615.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Intuit from $670.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $645.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Intuit

In other news, EVP Kerry J. Mclean sold 3,692 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $663.84, for a total transaction of $2,450,897.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now 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 at the SEC website. In other Intuit news, EVP Kerry J. Mclean sold 3,692 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,948 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,233,800.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Alex G. Balazs sold 280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 ninety days, insiders sold 4,717 shares of company stock valued at $3,117,156. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Intuit

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Intuit during the 3rd quarter worth $51,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Intuit by 18.8% in the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 3,050 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,558,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the period. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA raised its holdings in Intuit by 27.5% in the 3rd quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA now owns 8,800 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $4,496,000 after buying an additional 1,900 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its position in Intuit by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 18,397 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $9,400,000 after buying an additional 2,074 shares during the period. Finally, Hixon Zuercher LLC bought a new stake in Intuit during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,292,000. Institutional investors own 83.66% of the company’s stock.

Intuit Company Profile

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.