Canaccord Genuity Group Lowers Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) to Hold

Canaccord Genuity Group lowered shares of Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a hold rating and issued a $56.50 target price (down from $60.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a research report on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a hold rating and issued a $57.00 price target on shares of Smartsheet in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an equal weight rating and set a $57.00 price objective on shares of Smartsheet in a research report on Tuesday. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Smartsheet from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Smartsheet from $51.00 to $56.50 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $55.82.

Smartsheet Price Performance

NYSE SMAR opened at $55.34 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $49.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.52. Smartsheet has a 52-week low of $35.52 and a 52-week high of $55.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -89.25 and a beta of 0.74.

Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 5th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.15. Smartsheet had a negative net margin of 4.07% and a negative return on equity of 4.29%. The company had revenue of $276.41 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $274.23 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.23) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Smartsheet will post -0.05 EPS for the current year.

Smartsheet announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Smartsheet

In related news, insider Jolene Lau Marshall sold 3,994 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.11, for a total value of $172,181.34. Following the sale, the insider now owns 16,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $714,203.37. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Smartsheet news, COO Stephen Robert Branstetter sold 1,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total transaction of $97,891.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 64,215 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,403,395. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jolene Lau Marshall sold 3,994 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.11, for a total value of $172,181.34. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 16,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $714,203.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,157 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,763. Corporate insiders own 4.52% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Smartsheet

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in Smartsheet by 20.3% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 147,306 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,671,000 after buying an additional 24,823 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Smartsheet by 218.0% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 19,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $876,000 after purchasing an additional 13,621 shares in the last quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Smartsheet during the first quarter worth approximately $1,512,000. Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Smartsheet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,219,000. Finally, Sirios Capital Management L P acquired a new stake in shares of Smartsheet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,947,000. Institutional investors own 90.01% of the company’s stock.

Smartsheet Company Profile

Smartsheet, Inc engages in managing and automating collaborative work. Its platform provides solutions that eliminate the obstacles to capturing information, including a familiar and intuitive spreadsheet interface as well as easily customizable forms. The company was founded by W. Eric Browne, Maria Colacurcio, John D.