Investors Purchase High Volume of Guidewire Software Call Options (NYSE:GWRE)

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 1,297 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 1,563% compared to the typical daily volume of 78 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, President John P. Mullen sold 2,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.13, for a total value of $467,199.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 172,446 shares in the company, valued at $35,028,955.98. This represents a 1.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 1,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.42, for a total transaction of $297,388.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 273,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,060,758.60. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 32,371 shares of company stock worth $6,207,005. 0.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software by 22.2% in the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,688 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $453,000 after buying an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC bought a new stake in Guidewire Software in the 4th quarter valued at $2,110,000. GDS Wealth Management increased its holdings in Guidewire Software by 618.5% in the 4th quarter. GDS Wealth Management now owns 18,752 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,161,000 after acquiring an additional 16,142 shares during the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. purchased a new stake in Guidewire Software in the 4th quarter worth $427,000. Finally, MGO One Seven LLC bought a new position in shares of Guidewire Software during the 4th quarter valued at about $222,000.

Guidewire Software Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of GWRE stock opened at $213.83 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 2.66 and a current ratio of 2.66. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $193.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $192.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.94 billion, a PE ratio of 593.97, a PEG ratio of 37.21 and a beta of 1.18. Guidewire Software has a 52-week low of $107.65 and a 52-week high of $219.59.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The technology company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.44). The business had revenue of $289.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $285.74 million. Guidewire Software had a return on equity of 2.38% and a net margin of 2.91%. On average, analysts predict that Guidewire Software will post 0.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on GWRE shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Guidewire Software from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Guidewire Software from $228.00 to $231.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Guidewire Software from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Guidewire Software presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $206.08.

Guidewire Software Company Profile

Guidewire Software, Inc provides a platform for property and casualty (P&C) insurers worldwide. The company offers Guidewire InsuranceSuite Cloud, such as PolicyCenter Cloud, BillingCenter Cloud, and ClaimCenter Cloud applications. It also provides Guidewire InsuranceNow, a cloud-based platform that offers policy, billing, and claims management functionality to insurers; and Guidewire InsuranceSuite for Self-Managed.