Bentley Systems, Incorporated (NASDAQ:BSY) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Bentley Systems, Incorporated (NASDAQ:BSY) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 7,150,000 shares, a decrease of 10.4% from the September 15th total of 7,980,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,000,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.2 days. Approximately 5.2% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Bentley Systems Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of BSY traded down $0.29 on Wednesday, reaching $49.70. The stock had a trading volume of 408,336 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,246,940. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.50. Bentley Systems has a 12-month low of $43.82 and a 12-month high of $57.19.

Bentley Systems (NASDAQ:BSY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $330.34 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $325.20 million. Bentley Systems had a return on equity of 31.71% and a net margin of 29.17%. The company’s revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.20 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Bentley Systems will post 0.9 EPS for the current year.

Bentley Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th were paid a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 17th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Bentley Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 price objective on shares of Bentley Systems in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $63.00 price target on shares of Bentley Systems in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Bentley Systems in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Bentley Systems from $57.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Bentley Systems news, Director Raymond B. Bentley sold 91,045 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.43, for a total transaction of $4,500,354.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,598,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $820,471,566.08. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Barry J. Bentley sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.20, for a total value of $2,510,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,298,230 shares in the company, valued at $617,371,146. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Raymond B. Bentley sold 91,045 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.43, for a total value of $4,500,354.35. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,598,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $820,471,566.08. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 226,032 shares of company stock worth $11,248,676. Corporate insiders own 21.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Bentley Systems

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Bentley Systems by 4,618.2% during the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 519 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Bentley Systems by 90.1% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 576 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Bentley Systems by 68,500.0% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 685 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division raised its position in shares of Bentley Systems by 57.1% during the third quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bentley Systems by 75.4% in the second quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 833 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 44.16% of the company’s stock.

About Bentley Systems

Bentley Systems, Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, provides infrastructure engineering software solutions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. The company offers open modeling engineering applications, such as MicroStation, OpenBridge, OpenBuildings, OpenCities, OpenComms, OpenFlows, OpenPlant, OpenRail, OpenRoads, OpenSite, OpenTower, OpenTunnel, OpenUtilities, and OpenWindowPower; and open simulation engineering applications, including ADINA, AutoPIPE, CUBE, DYNAMEQ, EMME, LEGION, Power Line Systems, RAM, SACS, SPIDA, and STAAD; and geoprofessional applications for modeling and simulation of near and deep subsurface conditions, including AGS, Central, GeoStudio, Imago, Leapfrog, MX Deposit, Oasis montaj, OpenGround, and PLAXIS.