VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the five brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $281.6667.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of VeriSign to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of VeriSign in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price target on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Monday.

Insider Activity

In other VeriSign news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.25, for a total transaction of $488,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 423,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $103,341,930.75. This trade represents a 0.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 501 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.07, for a total value of $125,285.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 31,609 shares in the company, valued at $7,904,462.63. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 47,839 shares of company stock valued at $12,042,404. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of VeriSign

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in VeriSign by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,443,710 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $3,199,318,000 after purchasing an additional 861,065 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in VeriSign by 8.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,253,980 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,189,285,000 after acquiring an additional 321,737 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in VeriSign by 13.8% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,523,495 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $985,063,000 after acquiring an additional 426,492 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of VeriSign by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,326,799 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $670,685,000 after acquiring an additional 44,751 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its stake in shares of VeriSign by 71.3% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 1,202,278 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $307,098,000 after purchasing an additional 500,223 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

VeriSign Price Performance

Shares of VRSN opened at $245.08 on Wednesday. VeriSign has a one year low of $199.54 and a one year high of $310.60. The company has a market cap of $22.72 billion, a PE ratio of 28.56 and a beta of 0.78. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $248.41 and a 200-day moving average of $268.00.

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

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 18th were given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 18th. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.90%.

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.