Aspen Technology (NASDAQ:AZPN) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Aspen Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZPN)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $265.55, but opened at $277.27. Aspen Technology shares last traded at $275.99, with a volume of 612,735 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on AZPN shares. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Aspen Technology from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Loop Capital cut Aspen Technology from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $260.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $265.00 target price (down from $275.00) on shares of Aspen Technology in a report on Monday, January 27th. Berenberg Bank cut Aspen Technology from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Aspen Technology in a report on Sunday, February 2nd. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $262.00.

Aspen Technology Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $17.37 billion, a PE ratio of -473.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $253.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $236.06.

Aspen Technology (NASDAQ:AZPN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.03. Aspen Technology had a negative net margin of 3.26% and a positive return on equity of 2.81%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Aspen Technology, Inc. will post 6.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aspen Technology

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Aspen Technology in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in Aspen Technology in the 3rd quarter valued at about $48,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in Aspen Technology by 965.0% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 213 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Aspen Technology by 5,700.0% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 232 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Aspen Technology by 30.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 251 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. 45.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Aspen Technology

Aspen Technology, Inc provides industrial software that focuses on helping customers in asset-intensive industries worldwide. The company’s solutions address complex environments where it is critical to optimize the asset design, operation, and maintenance lifecycle. Its software is used in performance engineering, modeling and design, supply chain management, predictive and prescriptive maintenance, digital grid management, and industrial data management.