VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Upgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold” Rating

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also commented on VRSN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of VeriSign from $337.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price target on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $292.00.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $220.08 on Monday. VeriSign has a 52 week low of $208.86 and a 52 week high of $310.60. The firm has a market cap of $20.18 billion, a PE ratio of 24.98 and a beta of 0.75. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $244.76 and its 200-day moving average is $258.22.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $425.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $424.04 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 40.40% and a net margin of 49.84%.VeriSign’s revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.00 earnings per share.

Insider Activity at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 501 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.07, for a total value of $125,285.07. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,609 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,904,462.63. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.59, for a total transaction of $1,222,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 434,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $106,176,274.41. The trade was a 1.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,496 shares of company stock worth $7,505,653. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Prudential PLC grew its holdings in VeriSign by 69.5% in the fourth quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 11,612 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,821,000 after purchasing an additional 4,762 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. bought a new position in VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,110,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in VeriSign by 60.5% during the 4th quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,182 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,502,000 after purchasing an additional 2,330 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in VeriSign by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 41,855 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $10,169,000 after purchasing an additional 8,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 960,991 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $233,473,000 after purchasing an additional 71,570 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.