Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK) Reaches New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after KeyCorp raised their price target on the stock from $325.00 to $330.00. KeyCorp currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Autodesk traded as high as $315.98 and last traded at $315.36, with a volume of 492500 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $307.84.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on ADSK. Mizuho set a $260.00 price target on shares of Autodesk in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Autodesk from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Autodesk from $290.00 to $313.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. Scotiabank began coverage on Autodesk in a report on Monday. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $360.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of Autodesk in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Autodesk currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $302.38.

Insider Transactions at Autodesk

In other Autodesk news, Director Mary T. Mcdowell sold 550 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.50, for a total value of $146,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 31,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,323,159.50. This represents a 1.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Steven M. Blum sold 17,344 shares of Autodesk stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total value of $4,682,880.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 17,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,616,730. This trade represents a 50.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 19,280 shares of company stock worth $5,232,213. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Marshall Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Autodesk by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 4,491 shares of the software company’s stock worth $1,237,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Avitas Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Autodesk by 0.8% in the third quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,577 shares of the software company’s stock worth $1,536,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Autodesk by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,875 shares of the software company’s stock valued at $959,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Autodesk by 28.9% during the 3rd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 196 shares of the software company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Autodesk by 5.1% in the second quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 920 shares of the software company’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.24% of the company’s stock.

Autodesk Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $285.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $253.88. The firm has a market cap of $67.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.46, a PEG ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 1.47.

Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 29th. The software company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.15. Autodesk had a net margin of 18.21% and a return on equity of 59.41%. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Autodesk, Inc. will post 5.73 EPS for the current year.

About Autodesk

Autodesk, Inc provides 3D design, engineering, and entertainment technology solutions worldwide. The company offers AutoCAD Civil 3D, a surveying, design, analysis, and documentation solution for civil engineering, including land development, transportation, and environmental projects; BuildingConnected, a SaaS preconstruction solution; AutoCAD, a software for professional design, drafting, detailing, and visualization; AutoCAD LT, a drafting and detailing software; computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) software for computer numeric control machining, inspection, and modelling for manufacturing; Fusion 360, a 3D CAD, CAM, and computer-aided engineering tool; and Industry Collections tools for professionals in architecture, engineering and construction, product design and manufacturing, and media and entertainment collection industries.