John Calys Sells 500 Shares of VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Stock

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) EVP John Calys sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.56, for a total value of $140,780.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,087 shares in the company, valued at $8,752,855.72. This represents a 1.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

VeriSign Stock Up 3.5%

Shares of VRSN traded up $9.77 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $290.92. 862,744 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 829,757. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.27 billion, a PE ratio of 31.55 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $275.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $259.86. VeriSign, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $208.86 and a fifty-two week high of $312.48.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $434.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $433.19 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.76% and a negative return on equity of 39.20%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.21 EPS. Research analysts predict that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. VeriSign’s payout ratio is 35.14%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On VeriSign

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of VeriSign by 429.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 127 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of VeriSign by 25.3% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 788.0% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 222 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 120.8% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 234 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

More VeriSign News

Here are the key news stories impacting VeriSign this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded VeriSign to a “Strong Buy”, or Zacks Rank #1, citing growing optimism about the company’s earnings prospects. The upgrade is the clearest near-term catalyst behind the stock’s strength. VeriSign Upgraded to Strong Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive: VeriSign has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $328.75. Recent target increases from JPMorgan, Wedbush and other firms reinforce expectations for additional upside, although JPMorgan maintains a neutral rating. VeriSign analyst ratings
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, annualized to $3.24 and yielding about 1.2%, adds to shareholder returns and signals continued cash-generation capacity.
• Neutral Sentiment: VeriSign’s stock has outperformed many competitors recently despite a weaker session, remaining above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages and near its 52-week high. This indicates strong momentum but also leaves the shares more exposed to profit-taking.
• Negative Sentiment: CEO D. James Bidzos sold 3,300 shares and EVP Thomas Indelicarto sold 500 shares. Both transactions were conducted under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans and represented small reductions in their holdings, limiting the negative signal, but the insider selling may temper enthusiasm.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VRSN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on VeriSign from $308.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Wedbush upped their target price on VeriSign from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup increased their target price on VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $328.75.

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.