Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) Short Interest Down 13.3% in September

Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,990,000 shares, a drop of 13.3% from the September 15th total of 3,450,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,310,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Insider Activity at Intuit

In other news, EVP Laura A. Fennell sold 30,159 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $642.36, for a total transaction of $19,372,935.24. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 52,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,427,129.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CFO Sandeep Aujla sold 862 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $621.03, for a total value of $535,327.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 3,840 shares in the company, valued at $2,384,755.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Laura A. Fennell sold 30,159 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $642.36, for a total value of $19,372,935.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 52,038 shares in the company, valued at $33,427,129.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,297 shares of company stock valued at $35,220,046 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Intuit by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,057,696 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $16,937,502,000 after acquiring an additional 283,291 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Intuit by 1.0% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,340,555 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,538,236,000 after purchasing an additional 23,995 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Intuit by 17.3% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,616,811 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,062,578,000 after purchasing an additional 238,486 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Intuit by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,407,862 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $925,262,000 after purchasing an additional 56,370 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of Intuit by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,188,779 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $772,706,000 after buying an additional 12,068 shares during the last quarter. 83.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Intuit Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of Intuit stock traded down $8.50 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $609.39. 1,132,350 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,326,189. Intuit has a 52-week low of $473.56 and a 52-week high of $676.62. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $631.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $627.98. The firm has a market cap of $170.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The software maker reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.14. Intuit had a return on equity of 18.64% and a net margin of 18.19%. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Intuit will post 14.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Intuit Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. This is a boost from Intuit’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Intuit’s payout ratio is currently 38.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on INTU shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Intuit from $770.00 to $790.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on Intuit in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $760.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Intuit from $727.00 to $750.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Intuit from $690.00 to $795.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Intuit from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $735.71.

Intuit Company Profile

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.