Fair Isaac (NYSE:FICO) Reaches New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Fair Isaac Co. (NYSE:FICO)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $2,373.65 and last traded at $2,372.41, with a volume of 18335 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $2,348.10.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on FICO shares. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Fair Isaac from $1,850.00 to $2,500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Fair Isaac from $2,200.00 to $2,400.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Fair Isaac from $2,150.00 to $2,350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Fair Isaac from $2,130.00 to $2,374.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $2,040.00 price objective on shares of Fair Isaac in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,964.92.

Fair Isaac Trading Down 1.0 %

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $1,996.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,673.91. The firm has a market cap of $56.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 113.71, a P/E/G ratio of 4.35 and a beta of 1.35.

Fair Isaac announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to reacquire up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Fair Isaac

In related news, Director Henry Tayloe Stansbury sold 249 shares of Fair Isaac stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,338.55, for a total value of $582,298.95. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 92 shares in the company, valued at approximately $215,146.60. This trade represents a 73.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Thomas A. Bowers sold 2,680 shares of Fair Isaac stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,338.21, for a total transaction of $6,266,402.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,769 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,489,133.49. This trade represents a 31.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 6,890 shares of company stock worth $13,780,452 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fair Isaac

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FICO. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in Fair Isaac by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 234 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $292,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in shares of Fair Isaac by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,041 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $5,050,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Fair Isaac during the 1st quarter worth $547,000. Banco Santander S.A. lifted its position in shares of Fair Isaac by 12.3% during the 1st quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 346 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $432,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Councilmark Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fair Isaac during the 1st quarter worth $569,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.75% of the company’s stock.

Fair Isaac Company Profile

Fair Isaac Corporation develops analytic, software, and digital decisioning technologies and services that enable businesses to automate, enhance, and connect decisions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Scores and Software. The Software segment provides pre-configured analytic and decision management solution designed for various business needs or processes, such as account origination, customer management, customer engagement, fraud detection, financial crimes compliance, and marketing, as well as associated professional services.