VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Acquired by Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 37.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,638 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,640 shares during the quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $2,694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on VRSN shares. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price target on VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, VeriSign currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $282.00.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.25, for a total value of $488,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 423,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $103,341,930.75. The trade was a 0.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 166 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $41,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 31,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,777,750. This trade represents a 0.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 42,335 shares of company stock valued at $10,568,581. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $248.66 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $246.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $264.39. The stock has a market cap of $23.05 billion, a PE ratio of 28.98 and a beta of 0.77. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $205.37 and a one year high of $310.60.

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

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 18th. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.90%.

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.