NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

StockNews.com cut shares of NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

NetScout Systems Trading Down 1.6 %

NTCT opened at $20.04 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $19.04 and its 200-day moving average is $20.42. NetScout Systems has a 1-year low of $17.10 and a 1-year high of $30.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.54 and a beta of 0.60.

NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The technology company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.16. NetScout Systems had a negative net margin of 74.02% and a positive return on equity of 5.35%. The company had revenue of $174.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.47 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.10 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that NetScout Systems will post 1.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at NetScout Systems

In related news, COO Michael Szabados sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.41, for a total value of $102,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 21,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $430,324.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 3.59% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in NetScout Systems by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 35,900 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $657,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new position in NetScout Systems during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $69,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in NetScout Systems by 74.5% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 846,435 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $15,481,000 after purchasing an additional 361,245 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its holdings in NetScout Systems by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 61,877 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 5,010 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Comerica Bank raised its holdings in NetScout Systems by 38.8% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 45,858 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,002,000 after purchasing an additional 12,828 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

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.