Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS) Shares Sold by Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS) by 18.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,944 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 4,011 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Sapiens International were worth $519,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sapiens International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC increased its position in Sapiens International by 37.2% in the third quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC now owns 3,841 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 1,041 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Sapiens International in the third quarter worth $133,000. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in Sapiens International in the third quarter valued at $225,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sapiens International during the third quarter valued at $254,000. 30.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sapiens International Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SPNS opened at $31.12 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.79 and a beta of 1.16. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $30.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.23. Sapiens International Co. has a fifty-two week low of $19.91 and a fifty-two week high of $35.33. The company has a quick ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Sapiens International (NASDAQ:SPNS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The technology company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $130.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $130.85 million. Sapiens International had a net margin of 12.14% and a return on equity of 16.92%. Sapiens International’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.31 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Sapiens International Co. will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Sapiens International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th were given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.7%. This is an increase from Sapiens International’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 4th. Sapiens International’s dividend payout ratio is 50.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SPNS. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Sapiens International from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Barclays lifted their price target on Sapiens International from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.33.

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.