Altair Engineering (NASDAQ:ALTR) Sees Strong Trading Volume After Strong Earnings

Altair Engineering Inc. (NASDAQ:ALTR - Get Free Report) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. Approximately 1,206,100 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 149% from the previous session's volume of 484,657 shares.The stock last traded at $103.81 and had previously closed at $108.63.

The software reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.02 by $0.07. Altair Engineering had a net margin of 4.26% and a return on equity of 6.89%. The business had revenue of $151.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $146.55 million.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ALTR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Altair Engineering from $90.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Altair Engineering in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Altair Engineering from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $95.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, July 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Altair Engineering from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $85.00 to $71.00 in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Altair Engineering in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $100.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Altair Engineering news, major shareholder Jrs Investments Llc sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.59, for a total value of $666,835.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, major shareholder Jrs Investments Llc sold 6,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.59, for a total value of $666,835.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Christ Revocable Trust sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.57, for a total value of $10,657,000.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 360,360 shares of company stock valued at $35,476,660. 21.75% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Altair Engineering

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of ALTR. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in Altair Engineering by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 8,500 shares of the software's stock worth $812,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in Altair Engineering by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 10,219 shares of the software's stock valued at $1,002,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Altair Engineering by 8.5% during the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the software's stock worth $214,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Altair Engineering by 81.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 418 shares of the software's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSC Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Altair Engineering by 41.3% in the second quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 832 shares of the software's stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. 63.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Altair Engineering Stock Down 4.3 %

The company has a market cap of $8.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,155.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.15 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 3.14 and a quick ratio of 3.14. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $93.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.29.

Altair Engineering Company Profile

Altair Engineering Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides software and cloud solutions in the areas of simulation and design, high-performance computing, data analytics, and artificial intelligence in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Software and Client Engineering Services.