Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. Invests $9.31 Million in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 38,311 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $9,308,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VRSN. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of 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 during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 12.3% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 104.5% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,125 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,047,000 after buying an additional 2,108 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 122.1% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,358 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $852,000 after buying an additional 1,846 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 2.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,346 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,373,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

VeriSign Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRSN opened at $275.77 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.47 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $252.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $246.87. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1 year low of $208.86 and a 1 year high of $310.60.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 19th. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.80%.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.78, for a total transaction of $115,426.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 40,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,277,689.84. This trade represents a 1.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.02, for a total transaction of $1,355,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 35,195 shares in the company, valued at $9,538,548.90. The trade was a 12.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 6,992 shares of company stock valued at $1,857,748 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on VRSN shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of VeriSign from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target 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. raised their price target on shares of VeriSign from $273.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of VeriSign from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $317.67.

VeriSign Company 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.