Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) Downgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday morning.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Erste Group Bank reissued a hold rating on shares of Intuit in a research note on Friday, June 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Intuit from $585.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Susquehanna restated a positive rating and set a $757.00 price target on shares of Intuit in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Intuit from $745.00 to $740.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Intuit from $690.00 to $795.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $720.37.

Intuit Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:INTU opened at $641.97 on Friday. Intuit has a one year low of $473.56 and a one year high of $676.62. The stock has a market cap of $179.46 billion, a PE ratio of 59.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.24. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $636.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $631.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29.

Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The software maker reported $1.99 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. Intuit had a return on equity of 18.64% and a net margin of 18.19%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.40 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Intuit will post 14.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Intuit Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. This is a boost from Intuit’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Intuit’s dividend payout ratio is 38.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Sandeep Aujla sold 862 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $621.03, for a total transaction of $535,327.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 3,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,384,755.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Intuit news, CFO Sandeep Aujla sold 862 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $621.03, for a total value of $535,327.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 3,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,384,755.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Eve B. Burton sold 2,988 shares of Intuit stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $649.87, for a total value of $1,941,811.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 22,389 shares of company stock valued at $14,231,188 over the last quarter. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Intuit

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of INTU. LGT Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Intuit during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Cultivar Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Intuit in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Intuit in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Intuit during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Intuit by 145.8% in the 2nd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 59 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.66% of the company’s stock.

About Intuit

Intuit Inc provides financial management and compliance products and services for consumers, small businesses, self-employed, and accounting professionals in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Small Business & Self-Employed, Consumer, Credit Karma, and ProTax.