StockNews.com Downgrades Verint Systems (NASDAQ:VRNT) to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Verint Systems (NASDAQ:VRNT) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of Verint Systems in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Verint Systems in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Verint Systems from $28.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Verint Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.67.

Verint Systems Stock Performance

VRNT opened at $23.86 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Verint Systems has a 12-month low of $21.27 and a 12-month high of $38.17. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $25.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 25.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.24.

Insider Activity

In other Verint Systems news, insider Peter Fante sold 16,233 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.52, for a total transaction of $446,732.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 73,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,017,601.28. This represents a 18.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Grant A. Highlander sold 12,880 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.25, for a total transaction of $376,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 117,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,426,257.25. The trade was a 9.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verint Systems

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Verint Systems during the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Verint Systems during the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Verint Systems in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Verint Systems by 808.0% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,925 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,713 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Verint Systems by 45.7% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,955 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 613 shares during the period. 94.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.