Magnetar Financial LLC Raises Stock Position in Guidewire Software, Inc. $GWRE

Magnetar Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) by 112.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 8,767 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 4,631 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings in Guidewire Software were worth $2,015,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Guidewire Software during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Guidewire Software by 271.1% in the 2nd quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 1,399 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $328,000 after purchasing an additional 1,022 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Guidewire Software in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,811,000. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Guidewire Software by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,719 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $876,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Guidewire Software by 18.7% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 729 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $172,000 after buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Activity

In other Guidewire Software news, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.34, for a total transaction of $199,608.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 227,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,782,966.62. The trade was a 0.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Jeffrey Elliott Cooper sold 216 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.87, for a total value of $39,067.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 72,753 shares in the company, valued at $13,158,835.11. The trade was a 0.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 42,560 shares of company stock worth $7,882,898 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GWRE has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Guidewire Software from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $250.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Guidewire Software from $300.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Guidewire Software from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Guidewire Software currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $249.85.

Guidewire Software Trading Down 0.4%

GWRE stock opened at $157.59 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $151.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $199.41. Guidewire Software, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $120.37 and a fifty-two week high of $272.60. The firm has a market cap of $13.34 billion, a PE ratio of 71.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.20 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 3.48 and a current ratio of 2.93.

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

Guidewire Software declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, January 8th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Guidewire Software Profile

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.