Verint Systems (NASDAQ:VRNT) Given “Buy” Rating at Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC reissued their buy rating on shares of Verint Systems (NASDAQ:VRNT) in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $40.00 price objective on the technology company’s stock.

VRNT has been the topic of a number of other reports. StockNews.com raised Verint Systems from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Verint Systems from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an in-line rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Verint Systems from $32.00 to $28.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Verint Systems in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on Verint Systems from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verint Systems has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $34.00.

Verint Systems Price Performance

VRNT stock opened at $24.84 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $30.83 and a 200-day moving average of $31.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.24. Verint Systems has a 12 month low of $18.41 and a 12 month high of $38.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Verint Systems (NASDAQ:VRNT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The technology company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $210.17 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $212.81 million. Verint Systems had a net margin of 6.78% and a return on equity of 16.17%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.22 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Verint Systems will post 1.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Grant A. Highlander sold 3,389 shares of Verint Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.85, for a total transaction of $87,605.65. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 131,267 shares in the company, valued at $3,393,251.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Verint Systems news, CEO Dan Bodner sold 16,932 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.85, for a total value of $437,692.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 592,832 shares in the company, valued at $15,324,707.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Grant A. Highlander sold 3,389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.85, for a total transaction of $87,605.65. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 131,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,393,251.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 33,811 shares of company stock worth $874,014. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Verint Systems

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new position in Verint Systems during the fourth quarter valued at $980,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Verint Systems in the 4th quarter worth about $18,601,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verint Systems in the 4th quarter worth about $68,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in Verint Systems by 276.4% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 88,635 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,407,000 after purchasing an additional 65,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PEAK6 Investments LLC grew its position in Verint Systems by 2,518.2% during the 4th quarter. PEAK6 Investments LLC now owns 81,857 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,213,000 after purchasing an additional 85,242 shares during the last quarter. 94.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verint Systems Company Profile

Verint Systems Inc provides customer engagement solutions worldwide. It offers forecasting and scheduling, channels and routing, knowledge management, fraud and security solutions, quality and compliance, analytics and insights, real-time assistance, self-services, financial compliance, and voice pf the consumer solutions.