Guidewire Software Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:GWRE)

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 1,297 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 1,563% compared to the average volume of 78 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at Guidewire Software

In other news, CEO Michael George Rosenbaum sold 23,379 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.16, for a total value of $4,024,928.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 287,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,523,889.92. The trade was a 7.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, President John P. Mullen sold 1,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.72, for a total value of $266,922.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 189,261 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,420,684.92. The trade was a 0.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,601 shares of company stock worth $9,116,179 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Guidewire Software

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GWRE. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in Guidewire Software during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Guidewire Software by 537.0% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 172 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in Guidewire Software in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in Guidewire Software in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Guidewire Software during the 2nd quarter valued at $41,000.

Guidewire Software Stock Performance

Guidewire Software stock opened at $201.88 on Friday. Guidewire Software has a twelve month low of $95.02 and a twelve month high of $207.10. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $188.18 and its 200 day moving average is $156.97.

Guidewire Software (NYSE:GWRE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 5th. The technology company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $291.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $283.84 million. Guidewire Software had a negative return on equity of 1.29% and a negative net margin of 0.62%. The company’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.30 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Guidewire Software will post 0.53 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GWRE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Guidewire Software in a research report on Friday, October 11th. BTIG Research upped their price target on Guidewire Software from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. JMP Securities increased their price objective on Guidewire Software from $200.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Guidewire Software in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $168.00 price target on shares of Guidewire Software in a report on Friday, September 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.08.

About Guidewire Software

Guidewire Software, Inc provides a platform for property and casualty (P&C) insurers worldwide. The company offers Guidewire InsuranceSuite Cloud, such as PolicyCenter Cloud, BillingCenter Cloud, and ClaimCenter Cloud applications. It also provides Guidewire InsuranceNow, a cloud-based platform that offers policy, billing, and claims management functionality to insurers; and Guidewire InsuranceSuite for Self-Managed.