NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) Shares Up 0.6% – Time to Buy?

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NTCT has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com raised NetScout Systems from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of NetScout Systems from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st.

NetScout Systems Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a current ratio of 1.81. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $22.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.91. 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 earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The technology company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that NetScout Systems, Inc. will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other NetScout Systems news, insider Jean A. Bua sold 11,999 shares of NetScout Systems stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.92, for a total transaction of $287,016.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 71,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,706,955.12. The trade was a 14.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Downing sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.25, for a total transaction of $72,750.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 130,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,161,036. The trade was a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,499 shares of company stock worth $512,321 over the last three months. 3.71% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NetScout Systems

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NTCT. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in NetScout Systems by 32.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,964 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in NetScout Systems by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,495 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in NetScout Systems by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 28,296 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $615,000 after buying an additional 606 shares during the period. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in shares of NetScout Systems by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 13,307 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 681 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its position in shares of NetScout Systems by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 23,968 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $519,000 after purchasing an additional 792 shares during the period. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About NetScout Systems

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.