Advisors Capital Management LLC Purchases 6,384 Shares of Guidewire Software, Inc. $GWRE

Advisors Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) by 12.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,748 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 6,384 shares during the quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC owned about 0.07% of Guidewire Software worth $11,407,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. AGP Franklin LLC bought a new position in Guidewire Software in the 4th quarter worth $207,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Guidewire Software during the fourth quarter valued at about $311,000. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of Guidewire Software by 4,507.8% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 318,675 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $64,057,000 after purchasing an additional 311,759 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 4,113 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $827,000 after purchasing an additional 813 shares during the period. Finally, Earned Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,117 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GWRE opened at $139.35 on Monday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $144.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $179.23. The company has a current ratio of 2.93, a quick ratio of 2.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.34, a PEG ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 1.05. Guidewire Software, Inc. has a one year low of $115.57 and a one year high of $272.60.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.40. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 14.11% and a return on equity of 13.44%. The firm had revenue of $359.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $342.88 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.51 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 24.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

Guidewire Software announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock 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 reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on GWRE shares. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Guidewire Software currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $249.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Guidewire Software

In related news, CAO David Franklin Peterson sold 273 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.86, for a total value of $44,733.78. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 12,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,053,657.38. The trade was a 2.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 1,935 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.86, for a total transaction of $317,069.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 66,061 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,824,755.46. This trade represents a 2.85% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 30,079 shares of company stock worth $4,675,490 in the last 90 days. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Guidewire Software Company Profile

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.