NETGEAR (NASDAQ:NTGR) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

NETGEAR (NASDAQ:NTGR) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

Separately, Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of NETGEAR from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

NETGEAR Stock Performance

Shares of NETGEAR stock opened at $23.90 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $689.97 million, a PE ratio of 59.75 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.87. NETGEAR has a one year low of $10.48 and a one year high of $31.55.

NETGEAR (NASDAQ:NTGR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.24) EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.24). NETGEAR had a net margin of 1.83% and a negative return on equity of 9.24%. On average, equities analysts predict that NETGEAR will post -1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at NETGEAR

In related news, Director Thomas H. Waechter sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.42, for a total value of $60,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 61,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,859,726.70. This trade represents a 3.17 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Charles J. Prober sold 10,929 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.64, for a total transaction of $291,148.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 507,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,526,806.32. The trade was a 2.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NETGEAR

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NTGR. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of NETGEAR by 126.4% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 675,209 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $18,818,000 after purchasing an additional 376,974 shares during the last quarter. Portolan Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in NETGEAR in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,357,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in NETGEAR by 31.6% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 770,464 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $21,473,000 after buying an additional 184,863 shares during the period. Tenzing Global Management LLC acquired a new position in NETGEAR in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,510,000. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in NETGEAR in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,449,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NETGEAR Company Profile

NETGEAR, Inc provides connectivity solutions the Americas; Europe, the Middle East, Africa; and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Connected Home, and NETGEAR for Business. The Connected Home segment offers Wi-Fi routers and home Wi-Fi mesh systems, Wi-Fi hotspots, digital displays, broadband modems, Wi-Fi gateways, Wi-Fi range extenders, powerline adapters, and Wi-Fi network adapters; and provides value-added service offerings, including security and privacy, technical support, and parental controls.