Sivia Capital Partners LLC Acquires 2,330 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 60.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,182 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,330 shares during the quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $1,502,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 25.3% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Tranquilli Financial Advisor LLC increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Tranquilli Financial Advisor LLC now owns 872 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 0.8% in the third quarter. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,779 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,616,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. One Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. One Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,215 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, WealthCollab LLC increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 19.1% in the third quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 312 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $297.08 on Thursday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52-week low of $208.86 and a 52-week high of $312.48. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $278.04 and a 200 day moving average of $253.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.03 billion, a PE ratio of 32.83 and a beta of 0.69.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.04. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.95% and a negative return on equity of 39.98%. The company had revenue of $428.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.50 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.10 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 19th were given a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. VeriSign’s payout ratio is 35.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.45, for a total value of $146,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 37,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,872,615.95. The trade was a 1.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.02, for a total transaction of $1,355,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 35,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,538,548.90. This trade represents a 12.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,128 shares of company stock worth $2,834,304. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRSN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup upped 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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 raised shares of VeriSign from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Zacks Research raised shares of VeriSign from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $317.67.

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.