Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $679.35 and last traded at $677.56, with a volume of 114656 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $674.15.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on INTU. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Intuit from $690.00 to $795.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Intuit from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Intuit from $730.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Intuit from $745.00 to $740.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Intuit from $770.00 to $790.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $735.71.

Intuit Trading Up 1.5 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $191.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 1.25. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $625.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $627.81.

Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The software maker reported $1.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.14. Intuit had a net margin of 18.19% and a return on equity of 18.64%. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.40 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Intuit Inc. will post 14.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Intuit Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. This is an increase from Intuit’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Intuit’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.81%.

Insider Activity at Intuit

In related news, EVP Alex G. Balazs sold 2,941 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $628.76, for a total value of $1,849,183.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20 shares in the company, valued at $12,575.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Intuit news, EVP Laura A. Fennell sold 30,159 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $642.36, for a total transaction of $19,372,935.24. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 52,038 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,427,129.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Alex G. Balazs sold 2,941 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $628.76, for a total transaction of $1,849,183.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20 shares in the company, valued at $12,575.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,297 shares of company stock worth $35,220,046 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Intuit

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of INTU. Atomi Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Intuit by 16.8% in the first quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,651 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,073,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Intuit by 43.7% during the 1st quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,744 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $3,733,000 after buying an additional 1,747 shares in the last quarter. Stonebrook Private Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Intuit by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Stonebrook Private Inc. now owns 398 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Choate Investment Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Intuit by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 2,272 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,477,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Intuit by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 1,440 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $936,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. 83.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.