NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) Stock Price Up 0.6% – Here’s What Happened

NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTCT)’s stock price traded up 0.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $21.99 and last traded at $21.97. 28,867 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 94% from the average session volume of 503,477 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.84.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NTCT. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on NetScout Systems from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of NetScout Systems from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th.

NetScout Systems Trading Down 1.4 %

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 1.81 and a quick ratio of 1.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.69 and a beta of 0.64.

NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The technology company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.04. NetScout Systems had a negative net margin of 50.90% and a positive return on equity of 6.76%. Equities analysts expect that NetScout Systems, Inc. will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at NetScout Systems

In related news, insider Jean A. Bua sold 11,999 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.92, for a total value of $287,016.08. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,361 shares in the company, valued at $1,706,955.12. This trade represents a 14.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Michael Szabados sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.47, for a total transaction of $152,555.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 35,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $844,661.83. This trade represents a 15.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,499 shares of company stock worth $512,321 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in NetScout Systems by 1,214.4% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,367 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,263 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its stake in NetScout Systems by 316.8% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,513 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,150 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of NetScout Systems by 32.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,964 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 477 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in NetScout Systems by 811.9% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,216 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 1,973 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in NetScout Systems in the 4th quarter worth approximately $71,000. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NetScout Systems Company Profile

NetScout Systems, Inc provides service assurance and cybersecurity solutions for protect digital business services against disruptions in the United States, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers nGeniusONE management software that enables customers to predict, preempt, and resolve network and service delivery problems, as well as facilitate the optimization and capacity planning of their network infrastructures; and specialized platforms and analytic modules that enable its customers to analyze and troubleshoot traffic in radio access and Wi-Fi networks.