Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. Has $30.51 Million Stake in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. trimmed its position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSNFree Report) by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 105,649 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 2,107 shares during the quarter. VeriSign makes up about 1.3% of Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of VeriSign worth $30,511,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in VRSN. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in VeriSign in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 56.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 97 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in VeriSign in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in VeriSign in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in VeriSign in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

VeriSign Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of VRSN stock opened at $266.46 on Wednesday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12 month low of $175.62 and a 12 month high of $310.60. The firm has a market cap of $24.89 billion, a PE ratio of 31.80 and a beta of 0.79. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $274.78 and a 200-day moving average of $274.43.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSNGet Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The information services provider reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.01. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 40.87% and a net margin of 50.05%.The company had revenue of $409.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $410.35 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.01 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. VeriSign has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS.

VeriSign declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, July 24th that permits the company to repurchase $1.11 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the information services provider to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.50.

Get Our Latest Analysis on VRSN

Insider Activity at VeriSign

In related news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.15, for a total value of $1,320,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 508,772 shares in the company, valued at approximately $134,392,123.80. This represents a 0.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 38,706 shares of company stock valued at $10,591,676 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Profile

(Free Report)

VeriSign, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides domain name registry services and internet infrastructure that enables internet navigation for various recognized domain names worldwide. The company enables the security, stability, and resiliency of internet infrastructure and services, including providing root zone maintainer services, operating two of thirteen internet root servers; and offering registration services and authoritative resolution for the .com and .net domains, which supports global e-commerce.

See Also

Institutional Ownership by Quarter for VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN)

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