Franklin Resources Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS - Free Report) by 103.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 39,734 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 20,194 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.07% of Sapiens International worth $1,068,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SPNS. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new stake in shares of Sapiens International in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Sapiens International by 171.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,356 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 856 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Sapiens International by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC now owns 6,635 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $178,000 after buying an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Sapiens International by 28.6% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 8,108 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $218,000 after buying an additional 1,801 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Sapiens International during the fourth quarter worth $262,000. 30.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Sapiens International in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Sapiens International from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Sapiens International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sapiens International has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.50.

Sapiens International Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ SPNS traded down $0.04 on Friday, reaching $25.99. 133,041 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 150,903. The company has a 50 day moving average of $26.97 and a 200 day moving average of $28.87. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. 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 market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a PE ratio of 20.15 and a beta of 1.10.

Sapiens International (NASDAQ:SPNS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The technology company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $134.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $135.89 million. Sapiens International had a net margin of 13.31% and a return on equity of 17.42%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Sapiens International Co. will post 1.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 $0.66 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is an increase from Sapiens International's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 7th. Sapiens International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.