VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) CEO D James Bidzos Sells 5,000 Shares of Stock

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.20, for a total value of $1,241,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 416,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $103,275,771.80. This trade represents a 1.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

D James Bidzos also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, January 14th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.28, for a total value of $496,560.00.
• On Wednesday, December 17th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.25, for a total transaction of $488,500.00.
• On Tuesday, December 16th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.79, for a total transaction of $1,208,950.00.
• On Wednesday, December 10th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.07, for a total value of $484,140.00.
• On Tuesday, December 9th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.59, for a total value of $1,222,950.00.
• On Wednesday, November 19th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.05, for a total transaction of $492,100.00.
• On Tuesday, November 18th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.05, for a total transaction of $1,250,250.00.
• On Wednesday, November 12th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.27, for a total value of $502,540.00.
• On Tuesday, November 11th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.14, for a total transaction of $1,240,700.00.
• On Wednesday, October 22nd, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.54, for a total transaction of $523,080.00.

VeriSign Trading Down 0.0%

VRSN stock traded down $0.09 during trading on Thursday, hitting $249.22. The company had a trading volume of 540,222 shares, compared to its average volume of 568,902. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $247.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $263.89. VeriSign, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $205.37 and a fifty-two week high of $310.60. The company has a market cap of $23.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.05 and a beta of 0.77.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.25 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $419.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.71 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.86% and a negative return on equity of 40.66%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.07 EPS.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th were paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 18th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. VeriSign’s payout ratio is currently 35.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price target on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Friday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $282.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in VeriSign by 25.3% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 12.3% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $313,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in VeriSign by 104.5% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,125 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,047,000 after buying an additional 2,108 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of VeriSign by 122.1% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,358 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $852,000 after acquiring an additional 1,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of VeriSign by 2.0% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,346 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,373,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

About VeriSign

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.