Key Points
- VeriSign EVP Thomas Indelicarto sold 250 shares on July 1 at an average price of $255.83, totaling about $63,958. The sale left him with 36,301 shares and was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.
- VeriSign posted stronger-than-expected quarterly results, reporting EPS of $2.34 versus the $2.30 consensus and revenue of $428.9 million above estimates. Revenue rose 6.6% year over year, and analysts still expect full-year EPS of 9.47.
- Analyst sentiment remains moderately bullish, with an average price target of $327.67 and several firms recently lifting targets, including Baird to $355 and Citi to $320. The stock also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.81, or $3.24 annualized, for a yield of about 1.3%.
VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) EVP Thomas Indelicarto sold 250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.83, for a total value of $63,957.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 36,301 shares in the company, valued at $9,286,884.83. The trade was a 0.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.
VeriSign Stock Performance
VeriSign stock opened at $256.43 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $279.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $256.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.33 and a beta of 0.71. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $208.86 and a one year high of $312.48.
VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $428.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $424.50 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.95% and a negative return on equity of 39.98%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.10 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.
VeriSign Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.80%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several brokerages have recently issued reports on VRSN. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Citigroup raised their target price on VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on VeriSign from $285.00 to $308.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $327.67.
Read Our Latest Research Report on VRSN
Institutional Trading of VeriSign
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of VeriSign by 8.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,253,980 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,189,285,000 after acquiring an additional 321,737 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in VeriSign by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,020,169 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $976,700,000 after purchasing an additional 496,674 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in VeriSign by 1.4% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,818,151 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $699,916,000 after purchasing an additional 38,800 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in VeriSign by 19.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,491,035 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $362,247,000 after purchasing an additional 246,887 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in VeriSign during the 4th quarter valued at $312,900,000. 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.
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