Lazard Asset Management LLC Sells 2,890 Shares of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ:CHKP)

Lazard Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ:CHKP) by 0.7% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 389,132 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 2,890 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Check Point Software Technologies were worth $63,820,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Concord Wealth Partners acquired a new position in shares of Check Point Software Technologies during the first quarter worth $31,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Check Point Software Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Check Point Software Technologies by 37.0% during the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 500 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Check Point Software Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at $92,000. Finally, Alaska Permanent Fund Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Check Point Software Technologies during the first quarter valued at $117,000. 87.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Check Point Software Technologies Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of CHKP stock traded up $1.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $182.74. 638,013 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 756,486. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $161.86 and a 200 day moving average of $160.27. Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. has a 52-week low of $125.68 and a 52-week high of $184.67. The company has a market cap of $20.63 billion, a PE ratio of 25.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.62.

Check Point Software Technologies (NASDAQ:CHKP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The technology company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.01. Check Point Software Technologies had a net margin of 33.61% and a return on equity of 31.59%. The business had revenue of $627.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $623.19 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.74 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Check Point Software Technologies from $165.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Check Point Software Technologies in a report on Thursday. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Check Point Software Technologies from $175.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Check Point Software Technologies from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Check Point Software Technologies from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $183.68.

Check Point Software Technologies Company Profile

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. develops, markets, and supports a range of products and services for IT security worldwide. The company offers a multilevel security architecture, cloud, network, mobile devices, endpoints information, and IOT solutions. It provides Check Point Infinity Architecture, a cyber security architecture that protects against fifth generation cyber-attacks across various networks, endpoint, cloud, workloads, Internet of Things, and mobile.