Varonis Systems (NASDAQ:VRNS) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Hold Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Varonis Systems (NASDAQ:VRNS) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Varonis Systems in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. DA Davidson cut their price objective on Varonis Systems from $50.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Varonis Systems in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Varonis Systems from $60.00 to $50.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Varonis Systems from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Varonis Systems currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.38.

Varonis Systems Price Performance

VRNS stock opened at $40.74 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $43.81 and a 200-day moving average of $49.81. Varonis Systems has a 12-month low of $39.62 and a 12-month high of $60.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $4.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -47.37 and a beta of 0.85.

Varonis Systems (NASDAQ:VRNS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by ($0.24). Varonis Systems had a negative net margin of 17.38% and a negative return on equity of 20.35%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Varonis Systems will post -0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Varonis Systems announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, February 10th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to repurchase up to 2.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Varonis Systems

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Varonis Systems by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,246,769 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $544,124,000 after acquiring an additional 193,210 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Varonis Systems by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,615,462 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $147,801,000 after buying an additional 29,050 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Varonis Systems by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,501,581 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $111,145,000 after buying an additional 113,573 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Varonis Systems by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,290,114 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $101,750,000 after buying an additional 52,971 shares during the period. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in shares of Varonis Systems by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 2,287,544 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $101,636,000 after buying an additional 29,852 shares during the period. 95.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Varonis Systems

Varonis Systems, Inc provides software products and services that allow enterprises to manage, analyze, alert, and secure enterprise data in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally. Its software enables enterprises to protect data stored on premises and in the cloud, including sensitive files and emails; confidential personal data belonging to customers, and patients and employees' data; financial records; source code, strategic and product plans; and other intellectual property.