VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Sold by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lessened its position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 3.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 519,263 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 20,269 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $128,964,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VRSN. DV Equities LLC bought a new position in VeriSign in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 429.2% during 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. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its position 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. Activest Wealth Management grew its holdings in VeriSign by 788.0% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 222 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac acquired a new stake in VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $58,000. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

VeriSign Price Performance

Shares of VRSN opened at $277.66 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $278.74 and its 200-day moving average is $258.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.68 and a beta of 0.71. 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, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $428.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.50 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.95% and a negative return on equity of 39.98%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at VeriSign

In other news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.02, for a total transaction of $1,355,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 35,195 shares in the company, 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 is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.54, for a total value of $141,770.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 36,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,363,670.54. This represents a 1.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 26,300 shares of company stock valued at $7,125,942. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup boosted their price target on VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Wedbush started coverage on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Thursday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $318.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $285.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, VeriSign currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $325.25.

VeriSign Company 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.