Generali Investments Management Co LLC Sells 1,542 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Generali Investments Management Co LLC lessened its holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 24.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,644 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 1,542 shares during the period. Generali Investments Management Co LLC’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $1,339,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VRSN. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in VeriSign during the first quarter valued at approximately $205,000. Apollon Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the 1st quarter valued at $245,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of VeriSign by 77.0% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 57,048 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $14,483,000 after purchasing an additional 24,825 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. raised its holdings in VeriSign by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 617 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $157,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its holdings in VeriSign by 26.3% in the 1st quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 6,624 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,682,000 after purchasing an additional 1,378 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 2,500 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 28,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,769,033.99. This represents a 8.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.24, for a total value of $1,416,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 489,439 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $138,628,702.36. This represents a 1.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 48,539 shares of company stock valued at $12,990,759 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on VRSN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on VeriSign in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $270.00 price target for the company. Zacks Research upgraded VeriSign to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 target price on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $281.67.

VeriSign Trading Up 0.5%

NASDAQ VRSN opened at $252.88 on Friday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12 month low of $176.62 and a 12 month high of $310.60. The stock has a market cap of $23.44 billion, a PE ratio of 29.47 and a beta of 0.76. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $265.20 and its 200 day moving average is $274.01.

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

VeriSign declared that its board has authorized 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 purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 18th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. VeriSign’s payout ratio is presently 35.90%.

VeriSign Company Profile

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.