Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Has $19.69 Million Stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. decreased its stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 25.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 77,564 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 26,990 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.08% of VeriSign worth $19,691,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VRSN. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of VeriSign by 35.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,746 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $697,000 after acquiring an additional 721 shares during the last quarter. Cache Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the fourth quarter worth $685,000. Berkshire Hathaway Inc raised its position in shares of VeriSign by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc now owns 13,271,457 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,746,661,000 after acquiring an additional 455,844 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of VeriSign by 358.9% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 70,017 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $17,775,000 after acquiring an additional 54,759 shares during the last quarter. Finally, United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund bought a new stake in VeriSign in the fourth quarter valued at about $600,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other news, Director Yehuda Ari Buchalter sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.79, for a total transaction of $170,274.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,059,955.65. This represents a 13.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 501 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.17, for a total value of $145,375.17. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 38,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,104,805.90. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,004 shares of company stock valued at $9,305,492 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Trading Up 0.6%

NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $283.27 on Thursday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1 year low of $172.49 and a 1 year high of $291.54. The stock has a market cap of $26.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.63 and a beta of 0.78. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $280.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $251.02.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 41.37% and a net margin of 50.23%. The firm had revenue of $402.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $400.44 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.92 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a — dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.65%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRSN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th.

VeriSign Profile

VeriSign, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides domain name registry services and internet infrastructure that enables internet navigation for various recognized domain names worldwide. The company enables the security, stability, and resiliency of internet infrastructure and services, including providing root zone maintainer services, operating two of thirteen internet root servers; and offering registration services and authoritative resolution for the .com and .net domains, which supports global e-commerce.