Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS) Short Interest Up 28.3% in April

Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 219,700 shares, an increase of 28.3% from the March 31st total of 171,200 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 129,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days. Approximately 0.7% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Sapiens International Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SPNS traded up $0.18 during trading on Friday, reaching $31.30. 88,671 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 169,133. The company's 50 day moving average is $30.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a PE ratio of 27.95 and a beta of 1.16. 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 has a 52 week low of $19.91 and a 52 week high of $35.33.

Sapiens International (NASDAQ:SPNS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The technology company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $130.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $130.85 million. Sapiens International had a return on equity of 16.92% and a net margin of 12.14%. The company's revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.31 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sapiens International will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Sapiens International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a dividend 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 presently 50.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on SPNS. Barclays upped their price objective on Sapiens International from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Sapiens International from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $34.33.

Institutional Trading of Sapiens International

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sapiens International during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sapiens International during the 1st quarter worth $40,000. Psagot Value Holdings Ltd. Israel bought a new stake in shares of Sapiens International during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Sapiens International by 37.2% during the 3rd 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 last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sapiens International during the 3rd quarter worth $133,000. 30.73% of the stock is currently owned by 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.