NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) Shares Down 0.8% – Here’s What Happened

NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTCT) shares were down 0.8% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $20.81 and last traded at $21.04. Approximately 41,068 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 535,114 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.21.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NTCT. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on NetScout Systems from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of NetScout Systems from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th.

NetScout Systems Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $22.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.53 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.63 and a beta of 0.64.

NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The technology company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.04. NetScout Systems had a positive return on equity of 6.76% and a negative net margin of 50.90%. On average, equities analysts forecast that NetScout Systems, Inc. will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other NetScout Systems news, COO Michael Szabados sold 6,500 shares of NetScout Systems stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.47, for a total transaction of $152,555.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 35,989 shares in the company, valued at approximately $844,661.83. The trade was a 15.30 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jean A. Bua sold 11,999 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.92, for a total value of $287,016.08. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 71,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,706,955.12. This trade represents a 14.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,499 shares of company stock worth $512,321 in the last three months. Company insiders own 3.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of NetScout Systems

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of NetScout Systems in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $456,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of NetScout Systems by 10.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,165,443 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $25,348,000 after buying an additional 108,258 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in NetScout Systems by 28.4% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 163,272 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,551,000 after acquiring an additional 36,075 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in NetScout Systems by 5.7% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 36,726 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $799,000 after purchasing an additional 1,995 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of NetScout Systems by 32.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,964 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

NetScout Systems Company Profile

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.