Verint Systems (NASDAQ:VRNT) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

Verint Systems (NASDAQ:VRNT) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $36.00 price target on shares of Verint Systems in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of Verint Systems in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verint Systems presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.17.

Verint Systems Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRNT opened at $26.21 on Thursday. Verint Systems has a one year low of $18.41 and a one year high of $38.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The company has a market cap of $1.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.61, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.24. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.95.

Verint Systems (NASDAQ:VRNT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The technology company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.04). Verint Systems had a return on equity of 16.27% and a net margin of 6.78%. The company had revenue of $210.17 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.81 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.22 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Verint Systems will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verint Systems news, insider Peter Fante sold 4,417 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.60, for a total transaction of $161,662.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 98,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,622,485. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Peter Fante sold 4,417 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.60, for a total value of $161,662.20. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 98,975 shares in the company, valued at $3,622,485. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Dan Bodner sold 375,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.76, for a total value of $12,660,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 609,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,585,632.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verint Systems

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its position in shares of Verint Systems by 31.2% during the 2nd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 54,942 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,769,000 after buying an additional 13,076 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP grew its holdings in Verint Systems by 33.6% in the second quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 24,440 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $787,000 after purchasing an additional 6,150 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its stake in Verint Systems by 160.9% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 793 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 489 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its holdings in shares of Verint Systems by 79.3% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 14,719 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $474,000 after purchasing an additional 6,508 shares during the period. Finally, Algert Global LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verint Systems during the second quarter valued at about $202,000. 94.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Verint Systems

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.