Citigroup Cuts VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Price Target to $280.00

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) had its target price lowered by Citigroup from $337.00 to $280.00 in a research report released on Monday morning, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the information services provider’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research cut shares of VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price target on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $292.00.

VeriSign Price Performance

NASDAQ VRSN opened at $215.68 on Monday. VeriSign has a 1 year low of $208.86 and a 1 year high of $310.60. The company has a market capitalization of $19.78 billion, a PE ratio of 24.48 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $244.08 and a 200 day moving average of $257.93.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $424.04 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.84% and a negative return on equity of 40.40%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.00 EPS.

VeriSign Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This is a boost from VeriSign’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.96%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 166 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.24, for a total transaction of $36,393.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,213,122.52. The trade was a 0.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.28, for a total transaction of $496,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 414,099 shares in the company, valued at $102,812,499.72. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 30,662 shares of company stock worth $7,542,047. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of VeriSign

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 25.3% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its stake in VeriSign by 12.3% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $313,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 104.5% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,125 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,047,000 after purchasing an additional 2,108 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in shares of VeriSign by 122.1% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,358 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $852,000 after purchasing an additional 1,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in VeriSign by 2.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,346 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,373,000 after buying an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.