Groupama Asset Managment Purchases New Position in Varonis Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNS)

Groupama Asset Managment acquired a new position in shares of Varonis Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNS) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,250,000 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,538,000. Groupama Asset Managment owned 1.11% of Varonis Systems as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Varonis Systems by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,246,769 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $544,124,000 after buying an additional 193,210 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in 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 worth $147,801,000 after acquiring an additional 29,050 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in 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 purchasing an additional 52,971 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its holdings in shares of Varonis Systems by 1.3% in 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 purchasing an additional 29,852 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Varonis Systems by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,783,873 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $100,789,000 after purchasing an additional 147,081 shares during the period. 95.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VRNS. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Varonis Systems from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Varonis Systems from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Varonis Systems in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Varonis Systems in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Varonis Systems in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Varonis Systems currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.53.

Varonis Systems Price Performance

Shares of VRNS opened at $40.45 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $42.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.22. Varonis Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.11 and a 1-year high of $60.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.55 billion, a PE ratio of -47.03 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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Varonis Systems, Inc. will post -0.83 EPS for the current year.

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

Varonis Systems Profile

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.