Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Varonis Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Varonis Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNS) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,685,105 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 98,768 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 1.50% of Varonis Systems worth $74,869,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Virtue Capital Management LLC increased its position in Varonis Systems by 2.3% during the third quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 16,264 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $919,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Varonis Systems by 445.3% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 518 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in Varonis Systems by 29.5% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,645 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 603 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Varonis Systems by 25.5% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,263 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $184,000 after purchasing an additional 663 shares during the period. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. grew its position in Varonis Systems by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 16,742 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 691 shares during the last quarter. 95.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on VRNS shares. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Varonis Systems from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup lowered their target price on Varonis Systems from $57.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group upped their price target on Varonis Systems from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Varonis Systems in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of 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. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.38.

Varonis Systems Stock Performance

VRNS opened at $43.55 on Thursday. Varonis Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.62 and a 1-year high of $60.58. The stock has a market cap of $4.90 billion, a P/E ratio of -50.64 and a beta of 0.83. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $44.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24.

Varonis Systems (NASDAQ:VRNS) last posted its 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Varonis Systems, Inc. will post -0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Varonis Systems declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Monday, February 10th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to buy up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.