Evolve Private Wealth LLC Takes $1.38 Million Position in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Evolve Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 5,497 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,383,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Danske Bank A S grew its stake in shares of VeriSign by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 64,246 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $15,609,000 after acquiring an additional 12,220 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 174,140 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $41,886,000 after purchasing an additional 3,691 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in VeriSign by 208.5% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 13,385 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,324,000 after purchasing an additional 9,046 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in VeriSign by 47.5% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 16,352 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $3,973,000 after buying an additional 5,267 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA bought a new position in shares of VeriSign during the 4th quarter valued at $13,636,000. 92.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at VeriSign

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.35, for a total value of $146,175.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 34,551 shares in the company, valued at $10,100,984.85. The trade was a 1.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP John Calys sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.56, for a total value of $140,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,752,855.72. This trade represents a 1.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 36,500 shares of company stock valued at $10,059,796 over the last ninety days. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $281.80 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $272.60 and a 200 day moving average of $264.63. The company has a market cap of $25.45 billion, a PE ratio of 30.56 and a beta of 0.70. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12-month low of $208.86 and a 12-month high of $312.48.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $434.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $433.19 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.76% and a negative return on equity of 39.20%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.21 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on VeriSign from $308.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research raised shares of VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their target price on shares of VeriSign from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $328.75.

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.