Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Aspen Technology Inc. (NASDAQ:AZPN) by 4.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 805,837 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 32,733 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 0.97% of Aspen Technology worth $29,114,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Aspen Technology by 183.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 849,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,707,000 after buying an additional 549,594 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in Aspen Technology by 127.8% in the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Ltd. now owns 347,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,441,000 after buying an additional 194,709 shares during the last quarter. Pacific Global Investment Management CO increased its stake in Aspen Technology by 3.8% in the first quarter. Pacific Global Investment Management CO now owns 14,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $515,000 after buying an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in Aspen Technology during the first quarter valued at approximately $261,000. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its stake in Aspen Technology by 24.3% in the first quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 43,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,574,000 after buying an additional 8,530 shares during the last quarter.
Shares of Aspen Technology Inc. (NASDAQ:AZPN) traded down 0.52% on Tuesday, hitting $42.00. 517,071 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged. The stock has a market cap of $3.44 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.77. Aspen Technology Inc. has a 12-month low of $29.25 and a 12-month high of $45.32. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $40.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $36.51.
A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Aspen Technology from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 28th. KeyCorp restated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Aspen Technology in a research report on Sunday, June 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Aspen Technology in a research report on Friday, April 29th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Finally, Benchmark Co. boosted their target price on shares of Aspen Technology from $28.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Aspen Technology presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.86.
In other Aspen Technology news, CEO Antonio J. Pietri sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.00, for a total value of $175,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 163,844 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,389,916. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jr. Robert M. Whelan sold 4,041 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.63, for a total transaction of $152,062.83. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 10,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $397,824.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.
Aspen Technology, Inc provides process optimization software solutions designed to manage and optimize plant and process design, operational performance and supply chain planning. The Company operates through two segments: subscription and software, and services. Its subscription and software segment is engaged in the licensing of process optimization software solutions and associated support services.
