Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Acquires New Stake in Versant Corporation $VSNT

Key Points

• Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought 536,309 shares of Versant (NASDAQ:VSNT) in Q4, a stake worth about $24.13 million and equal to roughly 0.37% of the company.
• Insiders have been buying aggressively — Director David C. Novak purchased 143,000 shares (~$5.27M) and insiders bought 154,350 shares in the last 90 days, now owning about 7.60% of the stock.
• Versant declared a $0.375 dividend payable April 22 (ex‑dividend and record date April 1); analysts have a consensus "Hold" rating with a $37.75 price target versus the current price near $41.

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in Versant Corporation (NASDAQ:VSNT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 536,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,134,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 0.37% of Versant as of its most recent SEC filing.

Versant Trading Down 0.4%

VSNT opened at $41.00 on Thursday. Versant Corporation has a twelve month low of $27.17 and a twelve month high of $59.00. The company has a quick ratio of 4.02, a current ratio of 4.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The business's fifty day moving average price is $34.51.

Versant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 1st.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of Versant in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Arete Research upgraded shares of Versant to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Versant in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $52.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings assumed coverage on shares of Versant in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. They set a "sell (d)" rating for the company. Finally, Seaport Research Partners assumed coverage on shares of Versant in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. They set a "buy" rating and a $45.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Versant has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $37.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael Aaron Conway purchased 1,350 shares of Versant stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $36.14 per share, for a total transaction of $48,789.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 3,728 shares of the company's stock, valued at $134,729.92. This trade represents a 56.77% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David C. Novak purchased 143,000 shares of Versant stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $36.85 per share, with a total value of $5,269,550.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 158,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,842,936. This trade represents a 919.02% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 154,350 shares of company stock worth $5,679,039. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Versant

Versant Corporation is a provider of data management software. The Company designs, develops, markets and supports database management system products that companies use to solve data management and data integration issues. It also provides related product support, training and consulting services to assist users of the Company's products in developing and deploying software applications based on its products. The Company's Versant Object Database product is used primarily by enterprises, which have data management requirements, such as technology providers, telecommunications carriers, Government defense agencies, defense contractors, healthcare companies and companies in the financial services and transportation industries.

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