Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Boosts Stake in Varonis Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNS)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Varonis Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNS) by 28.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 323,217 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 71,701 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.29% of Varonis Systems worth $14,361,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Varonis Systems by 445.3% during the third 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 last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Varonis Systems by 31.0% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 5,814 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $328,000 after acquiring an additional 1,375 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Varonis Systems during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,045,000. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 663 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Varonis Systems by 138.9% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 28,490 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,610,000 after buying an additional 16,565 shares during the last quarter. 95.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRNS has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Varonis Systems from $57.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered 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 research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $67.00 price objective on shares of Varonis Systems in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Varonis Systems in a report on Thursday, January 9th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $60.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Varonis Systems from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Six investment 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Varonis Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.38.

Varonis Systems Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRNS opened at $39.16 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $43.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.39. Varonis Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.11 and a fifty-two week high of $60.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -45.53 and a beta of 0.85. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported ($0.10) 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, analysts predict that Varonis Systems, Inc. will post -0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Varonis Systems declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Monday, February 10th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to repurchase up to 2.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication 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.