VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Sold by Spire Wealth Management

Spire Wealth Management cut its stake in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 98.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 227 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 12,734 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $63,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its stake in VeriSign by 56.5% during the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 97 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 112.5% during the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 102 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in VeriSign in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, North Capital Inc. grew its position in VeriSign by 239.0% during the 3rd quarter. North Capital Inc. now owns 139 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Trading Up 1.2%

VRSN opened at $249.31 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $246.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $264.00. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1 year low of $205.37 and a 1 year high of $310.60. The stock has a market cap of $23.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.06 and a beta of 0.77.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $419.10 million during 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 quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.07 EPS.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th were paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 18th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. VeriSign’s payout ratio is 35.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on VRSN shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Friday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 target price on VeriSign in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $282.00.

Insider Activity at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.71, for a total transaction of $123,857.58. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,613,759.23. This represents a 1.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.25, for a total value of $488,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 423,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $103,341,930.75. This trade represents a 0.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 40,833 shares of company stock valued at $10,164,318 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

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.