Arbejdsmarkedets Tillaegspension Invests $23.24 Million in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Arbejdsmarkedets Tillaegspension bought a new stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 95,671 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $23,243,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in VeriSign during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 429.2% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 127 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of VeriSign by 51.5% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 147 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of VeriSign by 25.3% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other VeriSign news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.02, for a total value of $1,355,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 35,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,538,548.90. This represents a 12.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.78, for a total transaction of $115,426.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 40,028 shares in the company, valued at $9,277,689.84. This represents a 1.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,826 shares of company stock valued at $1,821,354. 0.56% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $297.57 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $262.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $248.59. The stock has a market cap of $27.08 billion, a PE ratio of 32.88 and a beta of 0.68. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $208.86 and a one year high of $310.60.

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

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. VeriSign’s payout ratio is currently 35.80%.

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.