Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) Sets New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $150.70 and last traded at $150.0350, with a volume of 311301 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $162.69.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on GWRE. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Guidewire Software in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Guidewire Software from $275.00 to $250.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup raised their price target on Guidewire Software from $242.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Guidewire Software from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $269.50.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 3.48, a current ratio of 3.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $189.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $215.53. The firm has a market cap of $11.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 133.66, a P/E/G ratio of 9.62 and a beta of 1.08.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 3rd. The technology company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66. The company had revenue of $332.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $316.62 million. Guidewire Software had a net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 10.15%. Guidewire Software’s revenue was up 26.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.43 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Guidewire Software, Inc. will post 0.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Guidewire Software announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, January 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to purchase up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider James Winston King sold 1,860 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.00, for a total transaction of $362,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 33,702 shares in the company, valued at $6,571,890. This trade represents a 5.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President John P. Mullen sold 7,975 shares of Guidewire Software stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.08, for a total transaction of $1,531,838.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 141,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,272,094.64. This trade represents a 5.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 51,558 shares of company stock worth $10,261,857 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GWRE. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,104 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $254,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Guidewire Software by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 989 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Guidewire Software by 9.3% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 624 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc raised its position in shares of Guidewire Software by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 911 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, American Trust lifted its stake in shares of Guidewire Software by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. American Trust now owns 1,632 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $375,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter.

About Guidewire Software

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.