JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 23,665 Shares of Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its holdings in shares of Sapiens International Co. (NASDAQ:SPNS - Free Report) by 13.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 154,213 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 23,665 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.28% of Sapiens International worth $4,144,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SPNS. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Sapiens International by 7.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,540 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,391 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Sapiens International by 415.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 54,640 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,036,000 after buying an additional 44,033 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $178,000 after buying an additional 539 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Sapiens International in the 3rd quarter valued at $231,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Sapiens International by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,400 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $279,000 after acquiring an additional 633 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 30.73% of the company's stock.

Sapiens International Trading Down 2.1 %

SPNS traded down $0.55 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $25.44. The stock had a trading volume of 121,407 shares, compared to its average volume of 150,785. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.72 and a beta of 1.10. Sapiens International Co. has a 52 week low of $23.69 and a 52 week high of $41.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.24. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $26.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $28.79.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 17.42% and a net margin of 13.31%. On average, equities analysts predict that Sapiens International Co. will post 1.42 EPS for the current year.

Sapiens International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th were paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.2%. This is a boost 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 payout ratio is presently 46.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

About Sapiens International

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.