VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) have been given a consensus rating of “Buy” by the six ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $328.75.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on VRSN shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on VeriSign from $308.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Wedbush boosted their target price on shares of VeriSign from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research upgraded VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling at VeriSign

In other news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total transaction of $981,651.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 439,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $130,690,172.33. The trade was a 0.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.54, for a total transaction of $141,770.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,363,670.54. This trade represents a 1.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 33,200 shares of company stock valued at $9,142,891. Insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new position in VeriSign in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,171,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec acquired a new position in VeriSign in the second quarter valued at $84,992,000. Odyssean LLC acquired a new position in VeriSign in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,138,000. Man Group plc purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the second quarter worth approximately $31,852,000. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in VeriSign during the 2nd quarter worth $512,000. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

VeriSign Price Performance

VRSN opened at $284.24 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $273.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $263.65. The stock has a market cap of $25.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.83 and a beta of 0.70. VeriSign has a 1 year low of $208.86 and a 1 year high of $312.48.

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

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. 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%.

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.