Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) Price Target Raised to $56.50

Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) had its price objective increased by Barclays from $50.00 to $56.50 in a research note published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on SMAR. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Smartsheet from $51.00 to $56.50 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a market perform rating and set a $56.50 target price (down from $59.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a research report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a hold rating and set a $56.50 target price (down from $60.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a research report on Tuesday. DA Davidson reissued a neutral rating and set a $56.50 price objective (up from $55.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Smartsheet from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $55.82.

Smartsheet Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SMAR opened at $55.34 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $7.66 billion, a PE ratio of -89.25 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.52. Smartsheet has a one year low of $35.52 and a one year high of $55.60.

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

Smartsheet declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, September 5th that permits the company to repurchase $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Smartsheet news, CEO Mark Patrick Mader sold 20,000 shares of Smartsheet stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.78, for a total value of $1,035,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 588,762 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,486,096.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Jolene Lau Marshall sold 3,994 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.11, for a total transaction of $172,181.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,567 shares in the company, valued at $714,203.37. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Patrick Mader sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 owns 588,762 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,486,096.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 35,157 shares of company stock valued at $1,762,763. 4.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMAR. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Smartsheet during the first quarter valued at $38,388,000. Granahan Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Smartsheet by 908.1% during the fourth quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC now owns 1,040,724 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,767,000 after purchasing an additional 937,483 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Smartsheet by 188.0% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,349,639 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,844,000 after purchasing an additional 881,004 shares during the period. Engaged Capital LLC acquired a new position in Smartsheet during the second quarter valued at $29,600,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Smartsheet by 40.9% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,835,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,931,000 after purchasing an additional 533,278 shares during the period. 90.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.