Swedbank AB Has $15.84 Million Stake in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 65,199 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,273 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $15,840,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VRSN. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in VeriSign during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its stake in VeriSign by 429.2% during the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 127 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in VeriSign during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in VeriSign by 25.3% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Activest Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 788.0% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 222 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRSN has been the subject of a number of research reports. Zacks Research raised shares of VeriSign from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of VeriSign from $273.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of VeriSign from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $317.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.02, for a total value of $1,355,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 35,195 shares in the company, valued at $9,538,548.90. This trade represents a 12.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.78, for a total transaction of $115,426.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 40,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,277,689.84. This trade represents a 1.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 6,826 shares of company stock valued at $1,821,354. 0.56% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

VeriSign Stock Performance

VRSN stock opened at $310.00 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.25 and a beta of 0.68. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12 month low of $208.86 and a 12 month high of $312.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $270.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $251.45.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $428.90 million during 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 19th. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.80%.

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.