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

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the five analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $298.00.

Several research analysts have commented on VRSN shares. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price target on VeriSign in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Zacks Research cut shares of VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Monday, December 29th.

VeriSign Stock Performance

VeriSign stock opened at $240.96 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $246.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $260.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.34 billion, a PE ratio of 28.08 and a beta of 0.75. VeriSign has a 52 week low of $216.43 and a 52 week high of $310.60.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.14, for a total value of $1,240,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 453,439 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,516,353.46. This represents a 1.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders sold 38,497 shares of company stock worth $9,491,845 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of VeriSign

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in VeriSign by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,151 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. ABC Arbitrage SA acquired a new position in shares of VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at $349,000. AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs lifted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 21.2% during the 4th quarter. AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs now owns 4,678 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,137,000 after acquiring an additional 819 shares during the period. Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the 4th quarter valued at about $13,636,000. Finally, Drive Wealth Management LLC raised its position in VeriSign by 109.5% in the fourth quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,630 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $396,000 after purchasing an additional 852 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by 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.