Bridges Investment Management Reduces CrowdStrike Holdings by 48.2%

Bridges Investment Management Inc. has significantly reduced its stake in CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRWD) by 48.2% during the second quarter of 2023. According to the firm’s latest Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Bridges now holds 433 shares of CrowdStrike, down from 836 shares after selling 403 shares in the quarter. The current value of its holdings in CrowdStrike stands at approximately $221,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also adjusted their positions in CrowdStrike recently. Cloud Capital Management LLC entered a new position in the company worth about $25,000 during the first quarter. Additionally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC increased its stake by 114.3%, now owning 75 shares valued at $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC and E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. have also made significant investments, with the latter increasing its position by 305.3% to own 77 shares valued at $27,000.

As a whole, institutional investors own about 71.16% of CrowdStrike’s stock. This indicates strong backing from major financial players despite some recent sell-offs.

Analysts Provide Mixed Ratings on CrowdStrike

CrowdStrike has attracted attention from various research analysts, leading to a range of target price adjustments. On September 19, 2023, Robert W. Baird raised its target price from $460.00 to $490.00, maintaining a “neutral” rating. Similarly, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating in a report released on September 18.

Meanwhile, Cfra issued a “hold” rating with an updated price objective of $555.00, up from $517.00, while Piper Sandler lowered its target price from $505.00 to $450.00. The consensus among analysts reflects an average rating of “Moderate Buy” with a consensus target price of $494.95.

CrowdStrike’s stock opened at $484.65 on October 10, 2023, showing a slight increase of 0.5%. The stock has experienced a 52-week low of $294.68 and a high of $517.98. With a market capitalization of $121.63 billion, the company maintains a price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of -407.27 and a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 113.32.

Recent Financial Performance and Insider Activity

In its latest quarterly earnings report, released on August 27, 2023, CrowdStrike reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.93, surpassing analysts’ expectations of $0.83. Revenue for the quarter reached $1.17 billion, which also exceeded the consensus estimate of $1.15 billion. Year-over-year, the company’s revenue increased by 21.4%.

For the fiscal year 2026, CrowdStrike has guided for an EPS range between $3.600 and $3.720, with third-quarter guidance set at $0.930 to $0.950.

Insider trading activity has also been notable, with CEO George Kurtz selling 17,830 shares on September 22, 2023, at an average price of $494.53, totaling approximately $8.82 million. Following this transaction, Kurtz retains 2,115,057 shares, valued around $1.05 billion. Similarly, President Michael Sentonas sold 10,000 shares on October 10 for a total of $5.15 million.

These transactions reflect a broader trend, as insiders sold a total of 158,090 shares valued at about $75.5 million in the last quarter, highlighting an ongoing shift in internal ownership. Insiders currently hold 3.32% of the company’s stock.

CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. specializes in providing cybersecurity solutions globally, with a focus on cloud-delivered protection for endpoints and cloud workloads, identity, and data. As the cybersecurity landscape evolves, CrowdStrike continues to adapt its offerings to meet the growing demands of businesses worldwide.