VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Bought by Perpetual Ltd

Perpetual Ltd increased its holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 159.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,150 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,626 shares during the quarter. Perpetual Ltd’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $2,223,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRSN. SteelPeak Wealth LLC acquired a new position in VeriSign in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,037,000. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of VeriSign by 16.6% during the 4th quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,733 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $664,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its stake in shares of VeriSign by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 1,661 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $404,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. boosted its stake in shares of VeriSign by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. now owns 16,317 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,964,000 after acquiring an additional 1,316 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. grew its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 32,171 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $7,816,000 after acquiring an additional 471 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on VRSN. Weiss Ratings raised VeriSign from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Citigroup lifted their price target on VeriSign from $280.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective 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, Zacks Research upgraded shares of VeriSign from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, VeriSign currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $297.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.28, for a total value of $496,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 414,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,812,499.72. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 332 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.62, for a total transaction of $79,885.84. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,551,651.52. This represents a 0.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 9,490 shares of company stock valued at $2,338,621 over the last three months. 0.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

VeriSign Price Performance

VRSN opened at $259.85 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.49 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $235.92 and a 200-day moving average of $247.68. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12-month low of $208.86 and a 12-month high of $310.60.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by ($0.06). The business 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 quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.00 EPS.

VeriSign Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th were issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a positive change from VeriSign’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. VeriSign’s dividend 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.