Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Versant Corporation $VSNT

Key Points

• Sequoia Financial Advisors opened a new position in Versant Corporation during the first quarter, buying 28,164 shares worth about $1.04 million.
• Several other institutional investors also initiated stakes in Versant, while analyst sentiment remains mixed: the stock has a Hold consensus rating and an average price target of $41.80.
• Versant reported better-than-expected earnings of $1.99 per share versus $1.69 expected, and it also announced a $0.375 dividend payable on July 22.

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Versant Corporation (NASDAQ:VSNT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 28,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,043,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Versant in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Advocate Investing Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Versant in the first quarter valued at $33,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of Versant during the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Versant during the 1st quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in Versant during the 1st quarter worth about $42,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VSNT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Versant from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Seaport Research Partners reissued a "buy" rating and set a $46.00 price objective on shares of Versant in a report on Monday, May 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Versant in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Versant from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Versant from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $41.80.

Versant Stock Down 1.2%

Versant stock opened at $35.90 on Friday. Versant Corporation has a twelve month low of $27.17 and a twelve month high of $59.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 2.32. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $39.33. The stock has a market cap of $5.07 billion and a P/E ratio of 18.04.

Versant (NASDAQ:VSNT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported $1.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter. As a group, equities analysts expect that Versant Corporation will post 4.38 EPS for the current year.

Versant Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be given a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. Versant's dividend payout ratio is 75.38%.

Versant Company Profile

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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