Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV Buys Shares of 3,025 VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV purchased a new position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,025 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $846,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VRSN. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 77.4% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 715 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the period. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 158.0% during the 3rd quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 4,030 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,146,000 after purchasing an additional 2,468 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 22,779 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $6,368,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd lifted its stake in shares of VeriSign by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd now owns 19,336 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $5,406,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the period. Finally, Willis Investment Counsel boosted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 2.0% in the third quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 5,391 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,507,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other VeriSign news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.28, for a total value of $496,560.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 414,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,812,499.72. The trade was a 0.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.08, for a total value of $124,041.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,501,044.20. This represents a 1.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 32,496 shares of company stock worth $8,008,193 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Price Performance

Shares of VRSN opened at $219.87 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $20.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.96 and a beta of 0.75. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1 year low of $208.86 and a 1 year high of $310.60. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $245.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $258.83.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.29 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $425.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $424.04 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.84% and a negative return on equity of 40.40%. The business’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.00 earnings per share.

VeriSign Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. This is a positive change from VeriSign’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. VeriSign’s payout ratio is presently 34.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRSN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research cut VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 target price on VeriSign in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup reduced their price target on VeriSign from $337.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, VeriSign presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $292.00.

VeriSign Company Profile

VeriSign, Inc (NASDAQ: VRSN) is an internet infrastructure company that operates critical components of the global Domain Name System (DNS) and provides cybersecurity-related services. The company is best known as the authoritative registry operator for the .com and .net top-level domains, maintaining the central databases and zone files that enable domain name resolution for millions of websites. VeriSign’s registry role is performed under contractual agreements with Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and involves high-availability, highly secure operations to support continuous internet connectivity.

In addition to its registry business, VeriSign offers a suite of services designed to protect and accelerate DNS and internet traffic for enterprises and service providers.