VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Purchased by PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab

PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab boosted its position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 7.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,065 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,181 shares during the period. PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $8,318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VRSN. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of VeriSign by 429.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 127 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $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% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Activest Wealth Management lifted 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, Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new position in VeriSign in the fourth quarter worth approximately $58,000. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

VeriSign Stock Performance

VeriSign stock opened at $294.56 on Friday. VeriSign, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $208.86 and a fifty-two week high of $312.48. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $274.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $262.29. The company has a market capitalization of $26.60 billion, a PE ratio of 31.95 and a beta of 0.70.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.02. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 39.20% and a net margin of 49.76%.The company had revenue of $434.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $433.19 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.56 earnings per share for the current year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRSN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on VeriSign from $308.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research raised VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Wedbush raised their price objective on VeriSign from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, VeriSign has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $328.75.

Insider Activity at VeriSign

In related news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 3,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.54, for a total transaction of $978,582.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 409,639 shares in the company, valued at $121,474,349.06. This trade represents a 0.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 500 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $292.20, for a total value of $146,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 35,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,241,902.20. This represents a 1.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 32,700 shares of company stock worth $8,996,716. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

VeriSign 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.