Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS) Short Interest Down 16.8% in December

Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 254,700 shares, a decline of 16.8% from the November 30th total of 306,000 shares. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 144,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on SPNS shares. William Blair reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Sapiens International in a report on Friday, December 6th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on Sapiens International from $44.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. StockNews.com downgraded Sapiens International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Sapiens International from $38.00 to $30.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.00.

Sapiens International Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SPNS opened at $26.74 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 21.06 and a beta of 1.15. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.12. Sapiens International has a 1 year low of $26.34 and a 1 year high of $41.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.18 and a quick ratio of 2.18.

Sapiens International (NASDAQ:SPNS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 11th. The technology company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.01). Sapiens International had a net margin of 13.23% and a return on equity of 17.61%. The business had revenue of $137.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $140.10 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.32 EPS. Sapiens International’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Sapiens International will post 1.42 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sapiens International

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Sapiens International by 22.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 177,878 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $6,630,000 after acquiring an additional 32,780 shares in the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its holdings in Sapiens International by 451.9% during the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,131,426 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $42,168,000 after purchasing an additional 926,405 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Sapiens International by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,540 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,391 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in Sapiens International by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 32,472 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,210,000 after purchasing an additional 1,585 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its holdings 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 buying an additional 44,033 shares during the period. 30.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.