Bentley Systems (NASDAQ:BSY) Shares Down 4.6% – Here’s Why

Bentley Systems, Incorporated (NASDAQ:BSY)’s share price was down 4.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $31.30 and last traded at $30.9660. Approximately 318,100 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 2,818,746 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.45.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on BSY shares. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Bentley Systems from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Bentley Systems from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Bentley Systems from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Bentley Systems in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Bentley Systems from $49.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $47.00.

Bentley Systems Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.06, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.00. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $33.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $36.36.

Bentley Systems (NASDAQ:BSY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.02. Bentley Systems had a net margin of 18.12% and a return on equity of 28.65%. The business had revenue of $424.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $419.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.35 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Bentley Systems, Incorporated will post 1.19 EPS for the current year.

Bentley Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 2nd. Bentley Systems’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.82%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bentley Systems

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in Bentley Systems by 49.5% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 810 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its holdings in Bentley Systems by 38.0% in the 1st quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 14,821 shares of the company’s stock valued at $521,000 after purchasing an additional 4,085 shares in the last quarter. Groupe la Francaise lifted its holdings in Bentley Systems by 76.3% in the 1st quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 109,266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,830,000 after purchasing an additional 47,273 shares in the last quarter. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP lifted its holdings in Bentley Systems by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP now owns 7,349 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Bentley Systems by 999.5% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 75,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,652,000 after purchasing an additional 68,633 shares in the last quarter. 44.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Bentley Systems

Bentley Systems, Inc is a global software provider specializing in infrastructure engineering applications for the design, construction, and operations of roads, bridges, rail and transit systems, water and wastewater networks, power plants and grids, industrial facilities, and communications infrastructure. Founded in 1984 by brothers Keith and Barry Bentley, the company is headquartered in Exton, Pennsylvania, and maintains offices and development centers across North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.