Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the five research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $33.50.

SPNS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Sapiens International in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Sapiens International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $36.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Sapiens International from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th.

Institutional Trading of Sapiens International

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Sapiens International in the third quarter worth about $231,000. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Sapiens International by 415.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 54,640 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,036,000 after purchasing an additional 44,033 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sapiens International by 5.1% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 32,472 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,210,000 after buying an additional 1,585 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Sapiens International by 7.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,540 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $700,000 after buying an additional 1,391 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its holdings in Sapiens International by 451.9% during the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,131,426 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $42,168,000 after buying an additional 926,405 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 30.73% of the company’s stock.

Sapiens International Stock Performance

Sapiens International stock opened at $25.99 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $26.98 and its 200 day moving average is $29.04. The company has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.15 and a beta of 1.10. Sapiens International has a twelve month low of $23.69 and a twelve month high of $41.22. The company has a quick ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Sapiens International (NASDAQ:SPNS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The technology company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $134.31 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $135.89 million. Sapiens International had a net margin of 13.31% and a return on equity of 17.42%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Sapiens International will post 1.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sapiens International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a boost from Sapiens International’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 7th. Sapiens International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.51%.

Sapiens International Company Profile

Sapiens International Corporation N.V. provides software solutions for the insurance industry in North America, the United Kingdom, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company provides various solutions for property and casualty commercial and personal lines, life and pensions, and reinsurance fields.