Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) Stake Lowered by Taurus Asset Management LLC

Taurus Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 52,519 shares of the software maker’s stock after selling 230 shares during the quarter. Intuit accounts for approximately 3.2% of Taurus Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Taurus Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Intuit were worth $32,614,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Intuit by 1.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,340,555 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,538,236,000 after buying an additional 23,995 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Intuit by 17.3% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,616,811 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,062,578,000 after acquiring an additional 238,486 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Intuit by 4.2% during the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,407,862 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $925,262,000 after acquiring an additional 56,370 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Intuit by 1.0% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,188,779 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $772,706,000 after purchasing an additional 12,068 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Unisphere Establishment grew its position in shares of Intuit by 4.2% in the second quarter. Unisphere Establishment now owns 1,000,000 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $657,210,000 after purchasing an additional 40,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.66% of the company’s stock.

Intuit Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:INTU opened at $687.87 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $192.80 billion, a PE ratio of 65.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.25. Intuit Inc. has a 12 month low of $552.68 and a 12 month high of $714.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The business has a 50-day moving average of $633.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $630.19.

Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The software maker reported $1.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. Intuit had a net margin of 18.19% and a return on equity of 18.64%. Intuit’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.40 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Intuit Inc. will post 14.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Intuit Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. This is a boost from Intuit’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Intuit’s dividend payout ratio is 39.81%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on INTU. Bank of America upped their target price on Intuit from $730.00 to $780.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Intuit from $770.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $757.00 price objective on shares of Intuit in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Intuit from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $750.00 to $685.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Intuit from $690.00 to $795.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Intuit currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $739.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Scott D. Cook sold 2,461 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $637.19, for a total value of $1,568,124.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,453,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,111,853,974.95. This represents a 0.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Alex G. Balazs sold 2,941 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $628.76, for a total transaction of $1,849,183.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,575.20. The trade was a 99.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 55,297 shares of company stock valued at $35,220,046. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

About Intuit

Intuit Inc provides financial management and compliance products and services for consumers, small businesses, self-employed, and accounting professionals in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Small Business & Self-Employed, Consumer, Credit Karma, and ProTax.