Aspen Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZPN) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

by · The Cerbat Gem

Aspen Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZPN – Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,470,000 shares, an increase of 8.9% from the August 31st total of 1,350,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 215,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.8 days. Currently, 5.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jr. Robert M. Whelan sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.10, for a total transaction of $219,100.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,540 shares in the company, valued at $1,871,114. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Aspen Technology

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZPN. Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Aspen Technology by 77.8% during the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. boosted its position in shares of Aspen Technology by 2,600.0% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 135 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Aspen Technology by 313.2% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Aspen Technology by 65.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 174 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aspen Technology during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.66% of the company’s stock.

Aspen Technology Price Performance

Shares of AZPN opened at $236.01 on Tuesday. Aspen Technology has a 1-year low of $162.26 and a 1-year high of $240.82. The stock has a market cap of $14.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -542.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.75. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $215.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $207.64.

Aspen Technology (NASDAQ:AZPN – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.49. Aspen Technology had a positive return on equity of 2.96% and a negative net margin of 0.87%. The firm had revenue of $342.91 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $319.10 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.87 EPS. Aspen Technology’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Aspen Technology will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Aspen Technology from $225.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Aspen Technology from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on Aspen Technology from $204.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Aspen Technology from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Aspen Technology currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $248.40.

Read Our Latest Analysis on AZPN

About Aspen Technology

(Get Free Report)

Aspen Technology, Inc provides industrial software that focuses on helping customers in asset-intensive industries worldwide. The company's solutions address complex environments where it is critical to optimize the asset design, operation, and maintenance lifecycle. Its software is used in performance engineering, modeling and design, supply chain management, predictive and prescriptive maintenance, digital grid management, and industrial data management.

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