VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Price Target Raised to $271.00

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) had its price target upped by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $270.00 to $271.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the information services provider’s stock.

VRSN has been the topic of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Monday, December 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price target on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $282.00.

VeriSign Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of VeriSign stock opened at $247.13 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $246.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $265.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.80 and a beta of 0.77. VeriSign has a 12-month low of $205.37 and a 12-month high of $310.60.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.02. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.86% and a negative return on equity of 40.66%. The firm had revenue of $419.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $416.71 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.07 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th were given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 18th. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 332 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.83, for a total transaction of $79,955.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,277 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,532,439.91. The trade was a 1.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.25, for a total transaction of $488,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 423,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $103,341,930.75. This represents a 0.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 47,670 shares of company stock worth $11,986,654 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On VeriSign

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new position in VeriSign in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 56.5% in the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 97 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its stake in shares of VeriSign by 112.5% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 102 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of VeriSign during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in VeriSign in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. 92.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.