EPAM Systems (NYSE:EPAM) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

EPAM Systems, Inc. (NYSE:EPAM) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $240.37, but opened at $248.74. EPAM Systems shares last traded at $248.75, with a volume of 768,624 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on EPAM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on EPAM Systems from $222.00 to $262.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of EPAM Systems in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $204.00 price objective for the company. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on EPAM Systems from $215.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of EPAM Systems from $225.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of EPAM Systems from $207.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, EPAM Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $268.95.

EPAM Systems Trading Up 3.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 4.56 and a current ratio of 4.56. The company has a market cap of $14.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 1.49. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $214.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $200.99.

EPAM Systems declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, August 8th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the information technology services provider to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Jason D. Peterson sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.00, for a total transaction of $237,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 24,836 shares in the company, valued at $5,886,132. This trade represents a 3.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 4.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of EPAM Systems

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EPAM. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of EPAM Systems by 28.6% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,857 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $349,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in EPAM Systems in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of EPAM Systems by 235.3% in the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 23,409 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $4,403,000 after acquiring an additional 16,428 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of EPAM Systems by 8.8% during the second quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 11,047 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,078,000 after acquiring an additional 895 shares during the period. Finally, D.B. Root & Company LLC acquired a new position in EPAM Systems in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $322,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.58% of the company’s stock.

About EPAM Systems

EPAM Systems, Inc provides digital platform engineering and software development services worldwide. The company offers engineering services, including requirements analysis and platform selection, customization, cross-platform migration, implementation, and integration; infrastructure management services, such as software development, testing, performance tuning, deployment, maintenance, and support services.