VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Acquired by Convergence Investment Partners LLC

Convergence Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 48.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,461 shares of the information services provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,020 shares during the quarter. VeriSign accounts for approximately 0.9% of Convergence Investment Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Convergence Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $5,330,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. 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 in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of VeriSign by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,020,169 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $976,700,000 after purchasing an additional 496,674 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of VeriSign by 19.8% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,491,035 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $362,247,000 after purchasing an additional 246,887 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the 4th quarter worth approximately $312,900,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in VeriSign by 4.5% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,049,235 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $293,335,000 after purchasing an additional 44,743 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRSN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Wedbush initiated coverage on VeriSign in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $318.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on VeriSign from $285.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Citigroup lifted their target price on VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $325.25.

VeriSign Price Performance

Shares of VRSN opened at $277.61 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $278.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $258.66. The stock has a market cap of $25.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.68 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) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $428.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.50 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.95% and a negative return on equity of 39.98%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.10 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other VeriSign news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 35,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,538,548.90. The trade was a 12.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total transaction of $981,651.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 439,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $130,690,172.33. This trade represents a 0.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 26,300 shares of company stock worth $7,125,942. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

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.