Aspen Technology (NASDAQ:AZPN) Trading Down 5.9%

Aspen Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZPN) dropped 5.9% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $185.34 and last traded at $185.82. Approximately 465,071 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 132% from the average daily volume of 200,788 shares. The stock had previously closed at $197.54.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $196.00 target price on shares of Aspen Technology in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Aspen Technology from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Aspen Technology presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $203.67.

Aspen Technology Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $202.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $196.38.

Aspen Technology (NASDAQ:AZPN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $257.16 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $259.70 million. Aspen Technology had a positive return on equity of 2.38% and a negative net margin of 8.17%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Aspen Technology, Inc. will post 5.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AZPN. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Aspen Technology by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 3,721,956 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $760,247,000 after acquiring an additional 124,934 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Aspen Technology by 12.9% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,044,959 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $215,920,000 after purchasing an additional 119,102 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Aspen Technology by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 612,024 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $134,737,000 after purchasing an additional 44,824 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Aspen Technology by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 415,662 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $91,508,000 after buying an additional 8,856 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Aspen Technology by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 313,105 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $68,931,000 after buying an additional 16,649 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.66% of the company’s stock.

About Aspen Technology

Aspen Technology, Inc provides industrial software that focuses on helping customers in asset-intensive industries worldwide. The company's solutions address complex environments where it is critical to optimize the asset design, operation, and maintenance lifecycle. Its software is used in performance engineering, modeling and design, supply chain management, predictive and prescriptive maintenance, digital grid management, and industrial data management.