APG Asset Management N.V. Sells 3,000 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

APG Asset Management N.V. trimmed its position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 142,835 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 3,000 shares during the quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. owned about 0.15% of VeriSign worth $39,932,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its stake in shares of VeriSign by 112.5% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 102 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the third quarter valued at $29,000. North Capital Inc. increased its holdings in VeriSign by 239.0% in the 3rd quarter. North Capital Inc. now owns 139 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its position in VeriSign by 51.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 147 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in VeriSign by 25.3% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.28, for a total transaction of $496,560.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 414,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,812,499.72. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 166 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.24, for a total transaction of $36,393.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,213,122.52. This trade represents a 0.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 23,662 shares of company stock worth $5,799,697 over the last three months. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of VeriSign from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on VeriSign from $337.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $292.00.

VeriSign Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of VRSN opened at $227.94 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $237.69 and its 200 day moving average is $253.25. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12-month low of $208.86 and a 12-month high of $310.60. The company has a market capitalization of $20.90 billion, a PE ratio of 25.87 and a beta of 0.76.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $425.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.00 earnings per share.

VeriSign Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th were issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 19th. This is a positive change from VeriSign’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. VeriSign’s payout ratio is currently 36.78%.

VeriSign 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.