VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Sold by Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 267,150 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 17,730 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.29% of VeriSign worth $74,687,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRSN. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted 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 acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of VeriSign in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in VeriSign in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in VeriSign during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, North Capital Inc. lifted its position in shares of VeriSign by 239.0% in the 3rd quarter. North Capital Inc. now owns 139 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Stock Performance

VRSN opened at $224.17 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $246.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $259.51. VeriSign, Inc. has a twelve month low of $208.86 and a twelve month high of $310.60. The firm has a market cap of $20.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.44 and a beta of 0.75.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.29 by ($0.06). VeriSign had a net margin of 49.84% and a negative return on equity of 41.14%. The company had revenue of $425.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.04 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.00 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis.

VeriSign Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. This is a positive change from VeriSign’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on VRSN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Zacks Research downgraded VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price objective on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Two research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, VeriSign currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $298.00.

VeriSign News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting VeriSign this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board raised the quarterly dividend 5.2% to $0.81 per share (annualized yield ~1.5%); dividend payable Feb. 27 with an ex-dividend date of Feb. 19 — supports income-oriented holders. Dividend Increase Article
• Positive Sentiment: Underlying market demand remains intact: DNIB reports 386.9M domain name registrations at end of Q4 2025, up 2.2% quarter‑over‑quarter — a demand tailwind for VeriSign’s .com/.net registry business. DNIB Domain Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue showed modest strength: Q4 revenue of $425.3M beat consensus by ~$1.3M and rose 7.6% year‑over‑year — a sign of stable top‑line momentum. Q4 Slide Deck / Press Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Company updated FY‑2026 revenue guidance roughly in line with Street expectations (~$1.7B), which keeps growth expectations steady but offers limited upside surprise. Guidance / Slide Deck
• Negative Sentiment: EPS missed: Q4 GAAP EPS was $2.23 vs. consensus $2.29 (miss of $0.06). Despite healthy margins, management reported a negative return on equity metric that may reflect capital structure/buyback accounting and raised investor concern. Earnings Summary / Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Insider activity: an EVP sold 498 shares (~$249 avg) disclosed Feb. 3 — small in size but sometimes interpreted negatively in the short term. Insider Sale Filing

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.08, for a total value of $124,041.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,501,044.20. The trade was a 1.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,812,499.72. The trade was a 0.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 37,496 shares of company stock worth $9,248,893. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.