Advent Software Inc (NASDAQ: ADVS) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Investment Research from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Separately, analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) cut their price target on shares of Advent Software Inc to $28.00 in a research note to investors on Tuesday, October 25th.

Advent Software, Inc. (Advent) offers software and services that automate work flows and data across investment management organizations, as well as the information flows between an investment management organization and external parties. It derives revenues from the development, marketing and sale of software products, hosting services, data interfaces and related maintenance and services that automate, integrate and support certain mission-critical functions of investment management organizations primarily in the United States, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Advent’s clients are investment management institutions and service providers that manage, advice and perform recordkeeping functions on financial assets. In October 2009, the Company completed the sale of its subsidiary, MicroEdge, Inc. to Vista Equity Partners. In March 2010, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Advent Norway AS, acquired Goya AS.

Shares of Advent Software Inc opened at 25.32 on Wednesday. Advent Software Inc has a 52 week low of $19.00 and a 52 week high of $31.63. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $26.04 and its 200-day moving average is $24.54. The company has a market cap of $1.286 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.13.

Source:http://localizedusa.com/2011/12/28/advent-software-inc-advs-shares-downgraded-to-a-neutral-rating-by-zacks-investment-research-analysts/

Advent Software, Inc. ADVS -2.91% , a leading provider of software and services for the global investment management industry, announced today the results of the independent Advent Users Group (AUG) annual Asset Management Operations and Compensation Survey. Co-sponsored by the Investment Adviser Association (IAA) and Advent Software, the 2011 study found that asset management firms benefitted from market growth and recovering fund flows, which contributed to a 16 percent year-over-year revenue growth and a rise in compensation for investment management executives and professionals. Furthermore, despite the uncertain economy, profit margins were up from the previous year, fueled largely by cost-cutting measures initiated in response to the financial crisis.

“The AUG survey offers invaluable insights into the trends shaping the asset management industry. Listening to our clients and understanding their needs is critical in our effort to develop new technology solutions that offer competitive advantage and support our clients’ growth,” said Anthony Sperling, senior vice president and general manager, Asset Management Group, Advent. “This year’s survey results underscore the importance of technology solutions to support operational efficiency and help clients focus on what matters most to them — the ability to adapt to market conditions and deliver great results for their clients.”

Focus on Client Service, Diversification of Investment Products and Social Media Top of Mind

The survey found that across the asset management industry, managers continued to diversify the types of products they manage for clients.

Spending on investment operations rose at a steady pace, while profit margins increased. In an effort to remain focused on client services, an increasing number of firms are delegating operations and support functions to third parties in order to achieve cost benefits and scale, gain access to additional resources and expertise, and address regulatory requirements.

Source:http://www.marketwatch.com/story/advent-users-group-survey-finds-cautious-optimism-among-asset-management-firms-as-revenue-grows-by-16-2011-10-31?reflink=MW_news_stmp

Advent Software has been downgraded by TheStreet Ratings from buy to hold. The company’s strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, impressive record of earnings per share growth and increase in net income. However, as a counter to these strengths, we find that the stock has had a generally disappointing performance in the past year.

Highlights from the ratings report include:

The revenue growth came in higher than the industry average of 2.4%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues rose by 15.6%. This growth in revenue appears to have trickled down to the company’s bottom line, improving the earnings per share.

ADVENT SOFTWARE INC has improved earnings per share by 44.4% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has demonstrated a pattern of positive earnings per share growth over the past year. We feel that this trend should continue. This trend suggests that the performance of the business is improving. During the past fiscal year, ADVENT SOFTWARE INC increased its bottom line by earning $0.45 versus $0.40 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($0.83 versus $0.45).

ADVS has no debt to speak of therefore resulting in a debt-to-equity ratio of zero, which we consider to be a relatively favorable sign. Despite the fact that ADVS’s debt-to-equity ratio is low, the quick ratio, which is currently 0.67, displays a potential problem in covering short-term cash needs.

The return on equity has improved slightly when compared to the same quarter one year prior. This can be construed as a modest strength in the organization. In comparison to the other companies in the Software industry and the overall market, ADVENT SOFTWARE INC’s return on equity is significantly below that of the industry average and is below that of the S&P 500.

ADVS has underperformed the S&P 500 Index, declining 18.22% from its price level of one year ago. Turning toward the future, the fact that the stock has come down in price over the past year should not necessarily be interpreted as a negative; it could be one of the factors that may help make the stock attractive down the road. Right now, however, we believe that it is too soon to buy.

Source:http://www.thestreet.com/story/11229108/1/advent-software-inc-stock-downgraded-advs.html