The shares of PTC Inc (NASDAQ:PTC) started the day with a decrease in investor sentiment, trading at $39.02, a 4.32% decline in the price of shares. The technology company announced preliminary results for its fiscal third quarter of 2015, with earnings exceeding market expectations. The enterprise solution company is expecting earnings per share of $0.51 to $0.52 for the quarter against market expectations of $0.49. However, PTC Inc issued a lower revenue guidance of $303 million, which is lower than the market’s estimate of $309.5 million. The company will disclose detailed fiscal third quarter results on July 29. If the EPS estimates come out to be true, PTC Inc will beat the market’s earnings estimates in two consecutive quarters. The technology solution company reported earnings per share of $0.53 in its previous quarter against market estimates of $0.47.
While announcing the preliminary results, James Heppelmann, President and CEO of PTC Inc, said, “PTC preliminary third quarter non-GAAP earnings are above the high end of our guidance despite revenue coming in just below our guidance range…” The shares of PTC Inc (NASDAQ:PTC) have grown by 6.06% year-to-date and the company trades at a P/E ratio of 41.10. Smart money has been bearish on the stock of the technology company as of late, with 22 hedge fund managers holding aggregate investments of $396.20 million at the end of the first quarter, which was lower than their holdings worth $422.18 million, held by 27 hedge fund managers at the end of the last quarter of 2014.
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A similar sentiment was noticed among the insiders of the company, with at least 11 insider sales in the last six months, though it should be noted that insider sales can not be considered bearish activity per se. Heppelmann was among the leading insiders selling some of their stakes, as he sold 25,000 shares each on February 2 and May 4.
Negative hedge fund sentiment signals an expectation of lower growth, although the hedge fund managers have been proven wrong on several occasions. Let’s find out the hedge fund sentiment around PTC Inc.