VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Position Increased by Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 31.5% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,193 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $345,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the 1st quarter valued at $641,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in shares of VeriSign by 118.3% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 220,285 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $55,924,000 after purchasing an additional 119,368 shares in the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the 1st quarter valued at about $508,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $351,000. Finally, Peak Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in VeriSign in the second quarter worth approximately $2,664,000. 92.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.87, for a total transaction of $592,175.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 28,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,769,033.99. The trade was a 8.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.27, for a total value of $502,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 451,439 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $113,433,077.53. The trade was a 0.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 40,839 shares of company stock valued at $10,918,189 in the last ninety days. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on VRSN. Zacks Research raised shares of VeriSign to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price objective on VeriSign in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on VeriSign in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $270.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $281.67.

VeriSign Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ VRSN opened at $245.76 on Thursday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12 month low of $177.95 and a 12 month high of $310.60. The company has a market cap of $22.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.64 and a beta of 0.76. The business’s 50 day moving average is $263.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $273.30.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.25 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $419.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.71 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.86% and a negative return on equity of 40.66%. VeriSign’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.07 earnings per share. VeriSign has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS.

VeriSign declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.11 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the information services provider to reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 18th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 18th. VeriSign’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.90%.

About VeriSign

VeriSign, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides domain name registry services and internet infrastructure that enables internet navigation for various recognized domain names worldwide. The company enables the security, stability, and resiliency of internet infrastructure and services, including providing root zone maintainer services, operating two of thirteen internet root servers; and offering registration services and authoritative resolution for the .com and .net domains, which supports global e-commerce.