Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Sells 2,913 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lowered its stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 109,449 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 2,913 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $26,600,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 112.5% in the third 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 bought a new position in shares of VeriSign during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 429.2% during the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 127 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its position in shares of VeriSign by 51.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 147 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new position in shares of VeriSign in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Institutional investors own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Price Performance

VeriSign stock opened at $268.66 on Friday. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $208.86 and a one year high of $310.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.45 billion, a PE ratio of 29.69 and a beta of 0.70. The business’s fifty day moving average is $250.83 and its 200 day moving average is $247.05.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $428.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.50 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 39.98% and a net margin of 49.95%.VeriSign’s revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 19th. VeriSign’s payout ratio is presently 35.80%.

Insider Activity at VeriSign

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.08, for a total transaction of $124,041.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,115 shares in the company, valued at $7,501,044.20. This represents a 1.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.02, for a total transaction of $1,355,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 35,195 shares in the company, valued at $9,538,548.90. This represents a 12.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 7,490 shares of company stock valued at $1,981,790 over the last three months. 0.56% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on VRSN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $273.00 to $278.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of VeriSign from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of VeriSign from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $317.67.

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.