Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) Rating Lowered to Hold at BMO Capital Markets

Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) was downgraded by research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Zacks.com reports.

SMAR has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $56.50 target price (down previously from $60.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $57.00 price objective on shares of Smartsheet in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $56.50 target price (down from $60.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group raised their price target on Smartsheet from $56.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $56.50 price target (down previously from $60.00) on shares of Smartsheet in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.47.

Smartsheet Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SMAR opened at $55.37 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.69 billion, a P/E ratio of -89.30 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $49.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $43.43. Smartsheet has a 52-week low of $35.52 and a 52-week high of $55.60.

Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 5th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.15. Smartsheet had a negative return on equity of 4.29% and a negative net margin of 4.07%. The business had revenue of $276.41 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $274.23 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.23) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Smartsheet will post -0.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Smartsheet announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that allows the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Smartsheet

In other news, COO Stephen Robert Branstetter sold 4,272 shares of Smartsheet stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.42, for a total value of $189,762.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 63,795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,833,773.90. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Mark Patrick Mader sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 588,762 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,486,096.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Stephen Robert Branstetter sold 4,272 shares of Smartsheet stock in a transaction on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.42, for a total value of $189,762.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 63,795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,833,773.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 39,429 shares of company stock valued at $1,952,525. Insiders own 4.52% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Smartsheet

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SMAR. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Smartsheet during the second quarter valued at approximately $92,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Smartsheet during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,122,000. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of Smartsheet by 541.6% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 7,218 shares of the company’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 6,093 shares in the last quarter. Clearline Capital LP boosted its position in shares of Smartsheet by 145.5% in the 2nd quarter. Clearline Capital LP now owns 207,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,164,000 after purchasing an additional 123,204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in Smartsheet during the 2nd quarter worth $6,400,000. 90.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Smartsheet Company Profile

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.