Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. Sells 3,378 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. reduced its position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 3.2% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 102,271 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 3,378 shares during the period. VeriSign makes up about 1.2% of Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $28,592,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings 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 valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its position in VeriSign by 12.3% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in VeriSign by 104.5% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,125 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,047,000 after buying an additional 2,108 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in VeriSign by 122.1% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,358 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $852,000 after acquiring an additional 1,846 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,346 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $2,373,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

VeriSign Trading Up 1.1%

VRSN opened at $218.15 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $243.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $257.65. The company has a market capitalization of $20.00 billion, a PE ratio of 24.76 and a beta of 0.75. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1-year low of $208.86 and a 1-year high of $310.60.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 negative return on equity of 40.40% and a net margin of 49.84%.The company had revenue of $425.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $424.04 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.00 earnings per share. 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. This is an increase from VeriSign’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio is 34.96%.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In related news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.59, for a total transaction of $1,222,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 434,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $106,176,274.41. The trade was a 1.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 501 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.07, for a total transaction of $125,285.07. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,609 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,904,462.63. This represents a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,662 shares of company stock worth $7,542,047. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price objective on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research raised VeriSign from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Citigroup cut their price objective on VeriSign from $337.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $292.00.

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.