Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ:CHKP) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ:CHKP) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-five research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $184.47.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on CHKP shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Check Point Software Technologies from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Check Point Software Technologies from $165.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Check Point Software Technologies from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Check Point Software Technologies from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Check Point Software Technologies from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th.

Check Point Software Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of CHKP opened at $193.93 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $188.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.90. Check Point Software Technologies has a one year low of $126.57 and a one year high of $196.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.93, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.62.

Check Point Software Technologies (NASDAQ:CHKP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The technology company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $627.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $623.19 million. Check Point Software Technologies had a net margin of 33.61% and a return on equity of 31.59%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.74 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Check Point Software Technologies will post 7.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Check Point Software Technologies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Check Point Software Technologies by 85.9% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 61,315 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $11,822,000 after acquiring an additional 28,340 shares during the period. Davis Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Check Point Software Technologies by 587.1% during the third quarter. Davis Capital Management now owns 1,649 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 1,409 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division boosted its stake in shares of Check Point Software Technologies by 29.3% in the third quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 36,371 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $7,013,000 after purchasing an additional 8,236 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Check Point Software Technologies by 83.2% in the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 1,865 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $308,000 after purchasing an additional 847 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its holdings in shares of Check Point Software Technologies by 120.0% in the second quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 22,000 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,630,000 after purchasing an additional 12,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.62% of the company’s stock.

Check Point Software Technologies Company Profile

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. develops, markets, and supports a range of products and services for IT security worldwide. The company offers a multilevel security architecture, cloud, network, mobile devices, endpoints information, and IOT solutions. It provides Check Point Infinity Architecture, a cyber security architecture that protects against fifth generation cyber-attacks across various networks, endpoint, cloud, workloads, Internet of Things, and mobile.