Simulations Plus Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:SLP)

Simulations Plus, Inc. (NASDAQ:SLP) saw some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Investors purchased 3,557 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 1,414% compared to the typical daily volume of 235 call options.

Simulations Plus Stock Performance

SLP opened at $12.97 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $260.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.12 and a beta of 0.83. Simulations Plus has a one year low of $12.92 and a one year high of $44.33. The business’s fifty day moving average is $24.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.18.

Simulations Plus (NASDAQ:SLP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 14th. The technology company reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.19. Simulations Plus had a negative net margin of 78.63% and a positive return on equity of 10.65%. The firm had revenue of $20.36 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.83 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.27 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Simulations Plus will post 1.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Stephens dropped their target price on Simulations Plus from $28.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Craig Hallum cut their price objective on Simulations Plus from $45.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 13th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Simulations Plus in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Simulations Plus in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, BTIG Research reduced their price objective on shares of Simulations Plus from $41.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.50.

Insider Transactions at Simulations Plus

In other news, Director Walter S. Woltosz sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.51, for a total value of $670,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,344,157 shares in the company, valued at approximately $112,062,701.07. This trade represents a 0.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 19.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Simulations Plus

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in Simulations Plus by 53.6% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,223 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 427 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Simulations Plus in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Simulations Plus by 33.8% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,485 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in Simulations Plus by 42.2% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,575 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 764 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its position in Simulations Plus by 502.9% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 2,689 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 2,243 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.08% of the company’s stock.

Simulations Plus Company Profile

Simulations Plus, Inc develops drug discovery and development software for modeling and simulation, and prediction of molecular properties utilizing artificial intelligence and machine learning based technology worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Software and Services. It offers GastroPlus, which simulates the absorption and drug interaction of compounds administered to humans and animals; and DDDPlus and MembranePlus simulation products.