StockNews.com Upgrades Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) to Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Thursday.

INTU has been the topic of a number of other reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Intuit from $700.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America increased their price objective on Intuit from $730.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Intuit from $685.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Intuit from $712.00 to $722.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Intuit from $768.00 to $765.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $737.44.

Intuit Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:INTU traded up $1.69 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $672.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,627,810 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,366,739. Intuit has a 12-month low of $557.29 and a 12-month high of $714.78. The company has a market cap of $188.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $637.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $630.99.

Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The software maker reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.14. Intuit had a net margin of 17.59% and a return on equity of 18.25%. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.14 EPS. The company's revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Intuit will post 14.07 EPS for the current year.

Intuit Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 9th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. Intuit's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Sandeep Aujla sold 775 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $601.31, for a total value of $466,015.25. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,451 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,676,430.81. This represents a 14.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Laura A. Fennell sold 7,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $657.64, for a total value of $5,063,828.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,304,518.24. This trade represents a 18.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 126,732 shares of company stock worth $81,378,070. 2.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Intuit

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Financial Advisors raised its position in shares of Intuit by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Financial Advisors now owns 1,639 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $1,018,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Intuit by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 1,078 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $669,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Intuit by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 1,558 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $1,024,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the period. Plancorp LLC boosted its stake in Intuit by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 881 shares of the software maker's stock worth $579,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aviso Wealth Management increased its stake in Intuit by 4.9% in the second quarter. Aviso Wealth Management now owns 362 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $238,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. 83.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Intuit Company Profile

Intuit Inc provides financial management and compliance products and services for consumers, small businesses, self-employed, and accounting professionals in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Small Business & Self-Employed, Consumer, Credit Karma, and ProTax.