Merit Financial Group LLC Lowers Stake in Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU)

Merit Financial Group LLC trimmed its position in Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) by 73.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 881 shares of the software maker’s stock after selling 2,411 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Intuit were worth $551,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in Intuit during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in Intuit during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in Intuit during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in Intuit by 119.0% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aspire Private Capital LLC lifted its position in Intuit by 144.4% during the third quarter. Aspire Private Capital LLC now owns 66 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. 83.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Intuit Stock Performance

Shares of INTU opened at $641.15 on Wednesday. Intuit Inc. has a 1 year low of $400.22 and a 1 year high of $671.01. The company has a market cap of $179.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.17. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $636.41 and a 200-day moving average of $608.45.

Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The software maker reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $3.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.39 billion. Intuit had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 17.51%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Intuit Inc. will post 11.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Intuit Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th were issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. Intuit’s payout ratio is currently 36.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on INTU. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Intuit from $615.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $700.00 price objective on shares of Intuit in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Intuit from $700.00 to $720.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Intuit from $735.00 to $745.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Intuit from $560.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Intuit has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $650.23.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kerry J. Mclean sold 3,692 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $663.84, for a total value of $2,450,897.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,233,800.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Intuit news, EVP Kerry J. Mclean sold 3,692 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $663.84, for a total value of $2,450,897.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,948 shares in the company, valued at $15,233,800.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Lauren D. Hotz sold 745 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $655.13, for a total transaction of $488,071.85. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,180 shares in the company, valued at $2,083,313.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,717 shares of company stock valued at $3,117,156 over the last 90 days. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Intuit Company Profile

Intuit Inc provides financial management and compliance products and services for consumers, small businesses, self-employed, and accounting professionals in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Small Business & Self-Employed, Consumer, Credit Karma, and ProTax.