Raiffeisen Bank International AG Trims Stock Position in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Raiffeisen Bank International AG decreased its holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 34,180 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 7,922 shares during the quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $9,718,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in VeriSign during the third quarter worth approximately $62,226,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in VeriSign in the third quarter valued at $17,800,000. Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its position in VeriSign by 27.0% during the third quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 945 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $264,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC increased its stake in VeriSign by 19.3% during the third quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 3,347 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $936,000 after acquiring an additional 542 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 44.5% in the 3rd quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,669 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,864,000 after purchasing an additional 2,054 shares during the period. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on VRSN. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 target price on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on VeriSign from $337.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded VeriSign from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $292.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 166 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.24, for a total value of $36,393.84. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,213,122.52. This represents a 0.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.28, for a total value of $496,560.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 414,099 shares in the company, valued at $102,812,499.72. The trade was a 0.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 23,662 shares of company stock valued at $5,799,697 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Price Performance

Shares of VeriSign stock opened at $215.91 on Friday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1-year low of $208.86 and a 1-year high of $310.60. The company has a market capitalization of $19.80 billion, a PE ratio of 24.51 and a beta of 0.75. The business has a 50-day moving average of $240.15 and a 200-day moving average of $255.24.

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

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 issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. This is an increase from VeriSign’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.78%.

VeriSign 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.