VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) CEO Sells $496,560.00 in Stock

January 16, 2026 by InsiderTrades.com

Key Points

D. James Bidzos sold 5,000 VeriSign shares on Jan. 13 at an average price of $248.20 for $1.241M, leaving him with 416,099 shares and reducing his ownership by about 1.19%.
This transaction is part of an ongoing insider sell-off — Bidzos sold a total of 37,000 shares across multiple trades from Oct. 22 through Jan. 14.
VeriSign is a $23.1B company that recently beat quarterly EPS estimates, pays a $0.77 quarterly dividend (1.2% yield), and carries an average analyst rating of Hold with a $282 price target.

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.28, for a total value of $496,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 414,099 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $102,812,499.72. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

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D James Bidzos also recently made the following trade(s):

On Tuesday, January 13th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.20, for a total transaction of $1,241,000.00.
On Wednesday, December 17th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.25, for a total transaction of $488,500.00.
On Tuesday, December 16th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.79, for a total transaction of $1,208,950.00.
On Wednesday, December 10th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.07, for a total transaction of $484,140.00.
On Tuesday, December 9th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.59, for a total transaction of $1,222,950.00.
On Wednesday, November 19th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.05, for a total value of $492,100.00.
On Tuesday, November 18th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.05, for a total value of $1,250,250.00.
On Wednesday, November 12th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.27, for a total value of $502,540.00.
On Tuesday, November 11th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.14, for a total value of $1,240,700.00.
On Wednesday, October 22nd, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.54, for a total value of $523,080.00.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $249.22 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $23.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.05 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $247.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $263.89. VeriSign, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $205.37 and a fifty-two week high of $310.60.

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VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.02. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.86% and a negative return on equity of 40.66%. The firm had revenue of $419.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $416.71 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.07 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th were issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 18th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

3 American Outperformers Are Lifting and Initiating Dividends

Several research firms have recently commented on VRSN. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price target on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $282.00.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on VRSN

Hedge Funds Weigh In On VeriSign

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of VeriSign by 32.9% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,097,003 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $894,414,000 after purchasing an additional 767,363 shares in the last quarter. Amiral Gestion purchased a new position in VeriSign during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,483,000. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC grew its holdings in VeriSign by 25.2% during the 3rd quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC now owns 68,706 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $19,208,000 after buying an additional 13,837 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. increased its stake in VeriSign by 21.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 13,362 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $3,844,000 after acquiring an additional 2,351 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aviva PLC raised its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 103.6% during the 2nd quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 64,938 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $18,754,000 after acquiring an additional 33,041 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About VeriSign

(Get Free Report)

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.