Traders Buy High Volume of Guidewire Software Call Options (NYSE:GWRE)

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders bought 1,297 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 1,563% compared to the typical daily volume of 78 call options.

Guidewire Software Stock Up 9.4%

Shares of GWRE opened at $136.85 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $142.87 and its 200 day moving average is $184.03. The company has a market capitalization of $11.59 billion, a PE ratio of 62.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 1.05. Guidewire Software has a 12-month low of $115.57 and a 12-month high of $272.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.93, a quick ratio of 2.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $359.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $342.88 million. Guidewire Software had a return on equity of 13.44% and a net margin of 14.11%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 24.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.51 EPS. Research analysts expect that Guidewire Software will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Guidewire Software announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, January 8th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on GWRE shares. Zacks Research raised Guidewire Software from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 6th. BTIG Research raised their price objective on Guidewire Software from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $249.85.

Insider Transactions at Guidewire Software

In other news, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 4,737 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.86, for a total value of $776,204.82. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 221,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,246,815.16. This trade represents a 2.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 4,757 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.72, for a total value of $755,031.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 67,996 shares in the company, valued at $10,792,325.12. This trade represents a 6.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 31,279 shares of company stock valued at $4,887,686 over the last quarter. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Guidewire Software

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWRE. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Guidewire Software by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,039,377 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,077,791,000 after acquiring an additional 116,726 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Guidewire Software by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,778,201 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $357,504,000 after acquiring an additional 145,924 shares during the last quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC increased its stake in Guidewire Software by 39.0% in the 4th quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,445,206 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $290,501,000 after acquiring an additional 405,850 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Guidewire Software by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,316,817 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $264,693,000 after acquiring an additional 45,289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors bought a new stake in Guidewire Software in the 4th quarter worth approximately $202,405,000.

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.