Smartsheet Inc (NYSE:SMAR) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Smartsheet Inc (NYSE:SMAR) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $55.82.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SMAR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $56.50 price objective (down previously from $60.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Smartsheet from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $56.50 target price (down from $60.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $56.50 target price (down from $61.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $56.50 price target (down previously from $59.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th.

Smartsheet Stock Performance

NYSE SMAR opened at $55.93 on Thursday. Smartsheet has a one year low of $35.52 and a one year high of $56.55. The firm has a market cap of $7.77 billion, a PE ratio of -180.41 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $55.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.22.

Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 5th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.15. Smartsheet had a negative net margin of 4.07% and a negative return on equity of 4.29%. The business had revenue of $276.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $274.23 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.23) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Smartsheet will post -0.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Smartsheet announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, September 5th that permits the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jolene Lau Marshall sold 3,571 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.59, for a total value of $180,656.89. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,529 shares in the company, valued at $684,432.11. This trade represents a 20.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Patrick Mader sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.05, for a total value of $280,250.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 578,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,439,610.10. The trade was a 0.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 42,194 shares of company stock valued at $2,248,098 over the last 90 days. 4.52% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SMAR. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Smartsheet by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. raised its holdings in Smartsheet by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 83,016 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,596,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Smartsheet by 25.5% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,122 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Smartsheet by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $639,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Smartsheet by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 13,253 shares of the company’s stock valued at $734,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares during the period. 90.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Smartsheet

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.