The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its SAP SE (NYSE:SAP) holdings by 23.7% in the fourth quarter, as revealed in the company’s latest filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor held 225,081 shares of the software company’s stock after selling 70,013 shares during the period. The value of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s SAP holdings stood at $55,417,000 at the end of the reporting period.
Other hedge funds also adjusted their stakes in SAP during the quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC established a new position in SAP worth approximately $25,000, while Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake valued at around $27,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its SAP holding by 2,700%, now owning 112 shares worth $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its stake by 122.4%, holding 129 shares valued at $32,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich also initiated a new position in SAP, worth about $42,000.
Analysts have been actively revising their ratings for SAP. BMO Capital Markets raised its price target from $300 to $320 and maintained an ‘outperform’ rating. Argus reiterated a ‘buy’ rating with a $320 target price. Barclays reaffirmed an ‘overweight’ rating and increased its price target to $308 from $286. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded SAP from ‘hold’ to ‘buy’, while TD Cowen also upgraded the stock from ‘hold’ to ‘buy’, raising its target price to $305 from $240. The consensus among analysts is a ‘Buy’ rating, with an average target price of $264.
SAP’s stock performance has been notable, opening at $292.10 on Thursday. The stock has a 52-week low of $179.15 and a high of $294.37. The company’s 50-day moving average is $268.04, and its 200-day moving average is $257.89. SAP’s market capitalization stands at $358.85 billion, with a P/E ratio of 101.78 and a beta of 1.28.
In its latest quarterly earnings report, SAP exceeded analyst expectations with $1.51 EPS, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.39. The company reported revenue of $10.35 billion, compared to the expected $9.08 billion. SAP also announced an annual dividend of $2.5423 per share, representing a yield of 0.8% and a payout ratio of 35.25%.
