Investors Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR)

Smartsheet Inc (NYSE:SMAR) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders purchased 9,585 call options on the company. This is an increase of 393% compared to the average daily volume of 1,944 call options.

Smartsheet Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SMAR traded up $3.38 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $55.47. 17,914,033 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,623,003. The firm has a market cap of $7.67 billion, a PE ratio of -89.16 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $48.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.25. Smartsheet has a 12 month low of $35.52 and a 12 month high of $55.48.

Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 5th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $276.41 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $274.23 million. Smartsheet had a negative return on equity of 4.29% and a negative net margin of 4.07%. The business’s revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.23) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Smartsheet will post -0.05 EPS for the current year.

Smartsheet declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to repurchase $150.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Smartsheet from $48.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Smartsheet from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $57.00 price objective on shares of Smartsheet in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on shares of Smartsheet from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Smartsheet from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.06.

Insider Transactions at Smartsheet

In other news, COO Stephen Robert Branstetter sold 4,272 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.42, for a total value of $189,762.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 63,795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,833,773.90. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, COO Stephen Robert Branstetter sold 4,272 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.42, for a total transaction of $189,762.24. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 63,795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,833,773.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Patrick Mader sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.78, for a total transaction of $1,035,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 588,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,486,096.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 39,429 shares of company stock valued at $1,952,525 over the last three months. 4.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Smartsheet by 37.5% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in shares of Smartsheet by 3.5% in the second quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 8,678 shares of the company’s stock valued at $383,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Smartsheet by 24.6% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Washington Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Smartsheet by 2.1% in the second quarter. Washington Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,775 shares of the company’s stock valued at $872,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Smartsheet by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 14,014 shares of the company’s stock valued at $670,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Smartsheet Company Profile

Smartsheet, Inc engages in managing and automating collaborative work. Its platform provides solutions that eliminate the obstacles to capturing information, including a familiar and intuitive spreadsheet interface as well as easily customizable forms. The company was founded by W. Eric Browne, Maria Colacurcio, John D.