Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTCT)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTCT - Free Report) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,959,996 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 30,445 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.73% of NetScout Systems worth $42,463,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NTCT. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in NetScout Systems by 166.4% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,885 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $366,000 after acquiring an additional 10,547 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in NetScout Systems by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,417,716 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $30,850,000 after acquiring an additional 5,176 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in NetScout Systems during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,136,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of NetScout Systems in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,480,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in NetScout Systems by 137.7% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 388,286 shares of the technology company's stock worth $8,410,000 after purchasing an additional 224,925 shares during the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on NetScout Systems from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st.

NetScout Systems Price Performance

Shares of NetScout Systems stock traded down $0.21 on Friday, reaching $19.84. 528,899 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 539,366. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a current ratio of 1.81. NetScout Systems, Inc. has a one year low of $17.10 and a one year high of $27.89. The firm has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a PE ratio of -3.39 and a beta of 0.66. The firm's 50 day moving average is $21.64 and its 200-day moving average is $21.87.

NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The technology company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.04. NetScout Systems had a negative net margin of 50.90% and a positive return on equity of 6.76%. As a group, analysts anticipate that NetScout Systems, Inc. will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at NetScout Systems

In other news, insider Jean A. Bua sold 11,999 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.92, for a total transaction of $287,016.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,361 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,706,955.12. This represents a 14.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John Downing sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.25, for a total value of $72,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 130,352 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,161,036. This represents a 2.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,499 shares of company stock valued at $512,321. 3.71% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About NetScout Systems

NetScout Systems, Inc provides service assurance and cybersecurity solutions for protect digital business services against disruptions in the United States, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers nGeniusONE management software that enables customers to predict, preempt, and resolve network and service delivery problems, as well as facilitate the optimization and capacity planning of their network infrastructures; and specialized platforms and analytic modules that enable its customers to analyze and troubleshoot traffic in radio access and Wi-Fi networks.