Norges Bank Purchases Shares of 45,728 Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS)

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 45,728 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $1,239,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 0.08% of Sapiens International at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new position in shares of Sapiens International during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sapiens International by 171.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,356 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sapiens International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $231,000. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC raised its position in Sapiens International by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC now owns 6,635 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $178,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the period. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Sapiens International in the fourth quarter valued at about $262,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 30.73% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SPNS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price objective on Sapiens International from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Sapiens International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $36.00 to $28.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of Sapiens International in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.50.

Sapiens International Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Sapiens International stock traded up $0.05 on Thursday, reaching $26.08. 39,672 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 150,577. Sapiens International Co. has a fifty-two week low of $23.69 and a fifty-two week high of $41.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $26.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.12. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.24 and a beta of 1.10.

Sapiens International (NASDAQ:SPNS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The technology company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $134.31 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $135.89 million. Sapiens International had a net margin of 13.31% and a return on equity of 17.42%. On average, analysts expect that Sapiens International Co. will post 1.42 EPS for the current year.

Sapiens International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 7th were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This is a positive change from Sapiens International's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 7th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.2%. Sapiens International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.51%.

Sapiens International 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.