Investors Purchase High Volume of Cadence Design Systems Put Options (NASDAQ:CDNS)

Cadence Design Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CDNS) was the target of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 8,675 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 172% compared to the average volume of 3,187 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CDNS has been the topic of several analyst reports. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and set a $405.00 price objective on shares of Cadence Design Systems in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Cadence Design Systems from $390.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Cadence Design Systems in a report on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Cadence Design Systems from $385.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Cadence Design Systems in a report on Monday, November 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $385.00 target price for the company. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $376.50.

Cadence Design Systems Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of CDNS stock opened at $296.59 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.84, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Cadence Design Systems has a fifty-two week low of $221.56 and a fifty-two week high of $376.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $308.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $328.50. The stock has a market cap of $80.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.01.

Cadence Design Systems (NASDAQ:CDNS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The software maker reported $1.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. Cadence Design Systems had a net margin of 20.93% and a return on equity of 29.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.88 earnings per share. Cadence Design Systems has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.890-1.950 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.050-8.150 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Cadence Design Systems will post 5.41 EPS for the current year.

Key Cadence Design Systems News

Here are the key news stories impacting Cadence Design Systems this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and 2026 guidance: Cadence reported Q4 revenue and EPS above estimates and issued FY‑2026 guidance that implies healthy growth and margin expansion; the print and outlook are the primary bullish catalyst behind the initial rally after earnings. CNBC: Cadence shares pop on earnings beat, custom chip optimism
• Positive Sentiment: AI product traction: Cadence highlighted its ChipStack AI Super Agent and AI-driven tools (Cerebrus) that management says can materially speed chip design and improve power/performance/area — strengthening Cadence’s growth narrative and valuation premium. Yahoo Finance: Cadence ChipStack AI Super Agent Launch
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst bullishness and price-target support: Several firms (Bank of America, Needham, others) reaffirmed buy ratings or raised targets after the print, supporting upside narratives for investors focused on AI and semiconductor design exposure. InsiderMonkey: Bank of America remains bullish
• Neutral Sentiment: Backlog and visibility: Management flagged a record backlog (~$7.8B) and that a large portion of 2026 revenue is already visible — positive for revenue certainty but implies some growth is already priced in. MarketBeat: CDNS post-earnings note
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy put and unusual options activity: Reported spikes in put buying and large volumes of put options suggest some traders are betting on a pullback or hedging exposure, which can amplify intraday selling pressure. American Banking News: Traders buy put options
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed analyst moves and target trims: A few firms trimmed price targets or maintained neutral ratings (Piper Sandler cut its target; Rosenblatt and others showed mixed messages), adding uncertainty about near-term upside and prompting profit-taking. Benzinga: Analyst revisions after Q4
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data reported is unreliable/zero in recent feed (likely a data issue) and should not be relied on for trading signals. (No meaningful linked source.)

Insider Buying and Selling at Cadence Design Systems

In related news, Director Ita M. Brennan sold 180 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.48, for a total value of $60,746.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 7,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,581,722. The trade was a 2.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John M. Wall sold 27,805 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.57, for a total transaction of $8,857,838.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 69,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,286,201.49. This represents a 28.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 56,475 shares of company stock valued at $18,505,486. 1.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cadence Design Systems

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Peterson Wealth Services raised its holdings in Cadence Design Systems by 1,501.3% during the third quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 187,115 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $65,726,000 after buying an additional 175,430 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Cadence Design Systems by 83.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 182,348 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $64,052,000 after acquiring an additional 82,856 shares in the last quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Cadence Design Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $6,177,000. Patton Fund Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Cadence Design Systems by 1,743.7% in the 3rd quarter. Patton Fund Management Inc. now owns 13,994 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $4,916,000 after purchasing an additional 13,235 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westerkirk Capital Inc. bought a new stake in Cadence Design Systems during the second quarter worth approximately $2,024,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.85% of the company’s stock.

Cadence Design Systems Company Profile

Cadence Design Systems, Inc (NASDAQ: CDNS) is a global provider of electronic design automation (EDA) software, hardware and intellectual property used to design and verify advanced semiconductor chips, systems-on-chip (SoCs), printed circuit boards (PCBs) and packaging. Headquartered in San Jose, California and founded in 1988, Cadence serves semiconductor companies, original equipment manufacturers and system designers across the globe, helping customers accelerate design cycles and manage the complexity of modern integrated systems.

The company’s offerings span software tools for digital, custom/analog and mixed-signal design, verification and signoff, as well as solutions for system-level modeling, thermal and signal integrity analysis, and PCB and package design.