Natixis Decreases Stake in ANSYS, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANSS)

Natixis reduced its stake in shares of ANSYS, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANSS - Free Report) by 62.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,250 shares of the software maker's stock after selling 64,284 shares during the quarter. Natixis' holdings in ANSYS were worth $12,903,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ANSS. Norinchukin Bank The boosted its position in ANSYS by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 4,955 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $1,671,000 after buying an additional 494 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its position in shares of ANSYS by 327.0% in the 4th quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 4,261 shares of the software maker's stock worth $1,437,000 after purchasing an additional 3,263 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors bought a new stake in shares of ANSYS during the 4th quarter valued at about $695,129,000. Claret Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of ANSYS during the fourth quarter valued at about $205,000. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP raised its stake in ANSYS by 26.5% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,197 shares of the software maker's stock worth $404,000 after buying an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.39% of the company's stock.

ANSYS Stock Performance

Shares of ANSS traded up $5.34 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $308.60. The stock had a trading volume of 436,151 shares, compared to its average volume of 480,299. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.05 billion, a PE ratio of 47.11, a PEG ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 3.01 and a quick ratio of 3.01. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $317.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $331.99. ANSYS, Inc. has a 12 month low of $275.06 and a 12 month high of $363.03.

ANSYS (NASDAQ:ANSS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The software maker reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.97 by ($0.32). The business had revenue of $882.17 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $864.46 million. ANSYS had a net margin of 22.62% and a return on equity of 12.69%. Analysts anticipate that ANSYS, Inc. will post 8.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at ANSYS

In other ANSYS news, Director Glenda Dorchak sold 200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.01, for a total transaction of $60,002.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,230 shares of the company's stock, valued at $969,032.30. This trade represents a 5.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Rosenblatt Securities increased their price objective on ANSYS from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com raised ANSYS from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 18th.

ANSYS Company Profile

ANSYS, Inc develops and markets engineering simulation software and services for engineers, designers, researchers, and students in the United States, Japan, Germany, China, Hong Kong, South Korea, rest of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally. It offers structural analysis product suite that provides simulation tools for product design and optimization; the Ansys Mechanical product, an element analysis software; LS-DYNA solver for multiphysics simulation; and power analysis and optimization software suite.