Wells Fargo & Company Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) Stock Price

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) had its target price lowered by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $250.00 to $210.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the technology company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 66.69% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on GWRE. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Guidewire Software from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research cut Guidewire Software from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Guidewire Software in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, DA Davidson raised shares of Guidewire Software from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $246.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Guidewire Software currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $266.64.

Guidewire Software Price Performance

Shares of GWRE stock opened at $125.98 on Wednesday. Guidewire Software has a 12-month low of $121.88 and a 12-month high of $272.60. The company has a quick ratio of 3.48, a current ratio of 3.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 119.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.52 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $183.35 and a 200-day moving average of $213.05.

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

Guidewire Software declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, January 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Guidewire Software

In other news, insider James Winston King sold 1,860 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.00, for a total transaction of $362,700.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 33,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,571,890. The trade was a 5.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 216 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.87, for a total transaction of $39,067.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 72,753 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,158,835.11. This represents a 0.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 48,358 shares of company stock valued at $9,409,729. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Guidewire Software

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GWRE. North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software during the 4th quarter worth about $593,000. iA Global Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Guidewire Software in the 4th quarter worth about $124,000. Stephens Inc. AR raised its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software by 22.1% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 2,538 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $510,000 after acquiring an additional 459 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC raised its stake in Guidewire Software by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 19,023 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,824,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in Guidewire Software by 9,406.6% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 203,442 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $40,894,000 after buying an additional 201,302 shares during the period.

About Guidewire Software

Guidewire Software, Inc develops software products and cloud services for property and casualty (P&C) insurance carriers. Headquartered in San Mateo, California, the company’s offerings are designed to help insurers manage the core functions of their business—policy administration, billing and claims—while supporting digital engagement, analytics and operational modernization.

Guidewire’s core product portfolio is commonly known as the InsuranceSuite, which includes PolicyCenter for policy administration, BillingCenter for billing and receivables, and ClaimCenter for claims management.