Simulations Plus, Inc. (NASDAQ:SLP) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Simulations Plus, Inc. (NASDAQ:SLP) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $56.00.

A number of brokerages recently commented on SLP. KeyCorp began coverage on Simulations Plus in a report on Monday, July 29th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $47.00 target price for the company. Craig Hallum restated a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 target price on shares of Simulations Plus in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. William Blair assumed coverage on Simulations Plus in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. JMP Securities assumed coverage on Simulations Plus in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on Simulations Plus from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 13th.

Simulations Plus Trading Down 3.5 %

NASDAQ SLP opened at $38.60 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.84. Simulations Plus has a twelve month low of $32.69 and a twelve month high of $52.69. The stock has a market cap of $772.39 million, a PE ratio of 80.42 and a beta of 0.72.

Simulations Plus (NASDAQ:SLP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 2nd. The technology company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.04. Simulations Plus had a return on equity of 7.80% and a net margin of 14.36%. The company had revenue of $18.54 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.92 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.20 EPS. Simulations Plus’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Simulations Plus will post 0.52 EPS for the current year.

Simulations Plus Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 29th will be given a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 29th. Simulations Plus’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

Insider Transactions at Simulations Plus

In other news, Director Daniel L. Weiner sold 3,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.31, for a total transaction of $157,007.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 8,759 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $423,147.29. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Daniel L. Weiner sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.32, for a total transaction of $36,990.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $345,683.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel L. Weiner sold 3,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.31, for a total value of $157,007.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 8,759 shares in the company, valued at approximately $423,147.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 44,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,945,798. Corporate insiders own 20.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Simulations Plus by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,259,176 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $101,098,000 after buying an additional 251,299 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its position in Simulations Plus by 36.5% during the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 381,693 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $15,707,000 after buying an additional 102,135 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. MA increased its position in Simulations Plus by 34.6% during the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 171,490 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $7,057,000 after buying an additional 44,129 shares during the period. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Simulations Plus during the first quarter worth approximately $4,717,000. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Simulations Plus by 49.0% during the first quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 35,845 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,475,000 after buying an additional 11,794 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.08% of the company’s stock.

Simulations Plus Company Profile

Simulations Plus, Inc develops drug discovery and development software for modeling and simulation, and prediction of molecular properties utilizing artificial intelligence and machine learning based technology worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Software and Services. It offers GastroPlus, which simulates the absorption and drug interaction of compounds administered to humans and animals; and DDDPlus and MembranePlus simulation products.