Quest Partners LLC Invests $73,000 in NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTCT)

Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTCT) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 3,986 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $73,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NTCT. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of NetScout Systems by 74.5% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 846,435 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $15,481,000 after buying an additional 361,245 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in NetScout Systems by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 977,483 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $21,456,000 after acquiring an additional 60,772 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in NetScout Systems by 2.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,230,849 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $201,602,000 after purchasing an additional 223,975 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of NetScout Systems by 73.0% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,429,158 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $97,220,000 after purchasing an additional 1,869,529 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of NetScout Systems by 27.1% in the first quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 226,505 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,947,000 after purchasing an additional 48,300 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on NTCT shares. StockNews.com cut NetScout Systems from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of NetScout Systems in a report on Friday, July 26th.

Insider Activity at NetScout Systems

In other news, COO Michael Szabados sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.81, for a total value of $122,265.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 43,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $816,993.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP John Downing sold 4,247 shares of NetScout Systems stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total value of $84,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 131,590 shares in the company, valued at $2,631,800. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael Szabados sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.81, for a total transaction of $122,265.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 43,434 shares in the company, valued at $816,993.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,952 shares of company stock worth $598,411. Company insiders own 3.59% of the company’s stock.

NetScout Systems Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NTCT opened at $19.82 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.44 and a beta of 0.58. NetScout Systems, Inc. has a 1 year low of $17.10 and a 1 year high of $28.58. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $19.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $19.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.50.

NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The technology company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $174.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $168.47 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. NetScout Systems’s quarterly revenue was down 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that NetScout Systems, Inc. will post 1.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NetScout Systems 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.