EPAM Systems, Inc. (NYSE:EPAM) Short Interest Up 8.6% in October

EPAM Systems, Inc. (NYSE:EPAM) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 761,600 shares, a growth of 8.6% from the October 15th total of 701,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 582,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.3 days. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EPAM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of EPAM Systems in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $204.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of EPAM Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Itau BBA Securities raised shares of EPAM Systems from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $269.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of EPAM Systems from $237.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on shares of EPAM Systems from $245.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $264.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at EPAM Systems

In other news, CFO Jason D. Peterson sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.00, for a total transaction of $237,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 24,836 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,886,132. This represents a 3.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EPAM. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in shares of EPAM Systems during the 1st quarter worth about $272,000. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of EPAM Systems during the 1st quarter worth about $220,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of EPAM Systems by 9.2% during the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,701 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $470,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its stake in EPAM Systems by 17.8% in the 1st quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 2,790 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $770,000 after buying an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL grew its stake in EPAM Systems by 26.9% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 14,457 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $3,992,000 after buying an additional 3,067 shares during the last quarter. 91.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EPAM Systems Stock Down 3.9 %

NYSE:EPAM traded down $9.57 on Friday, hitting $235.29. 851,851 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 628,540. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $203.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $197.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 4.56 and a quick ratio of 4.56. EPAM Systems has a 52 week low of $169.43 and a 52 week high of $317.50. The company has a market cap of $13.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 1.46.

EPAM Systems declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, August 8th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the information technology services provider to purchase up to 4.3% 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.

About EPAM Systems

EPAM Systems, Inc provides digital platform engineering and software development services worldwide. The company offers engineering services, including requirements analysis and platform selection, customization, cross-platform migration, implementation, and integration; infrastructure management services, such as software development, testing, performance tuning, deployment, maintenance, and support services.