VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Sold by Ossiam

Ossiam decreased its holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 55.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 56,252 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 68,741 shares during the quarter. Ossiam owned about 0.06% of VeriSign worth $16,246,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 17.3% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 71,545 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $20,662,000 after buying an additional 10,560 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in VeriSign by 107.1% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,642 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $474,000 after acquiring an additional 849 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in VeriSign during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $470,000. Avestar Capital LLC raised its stake in VeriSign by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 901 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SCS Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in VeriSign during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $725,000. 92.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 2,500 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 28,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,769,033.99. This trade represents a 8.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.57, for a total transaction of $1,327,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 471,439 shares in the company, valued at approximately $125,200,055.23. This trade represents a 1.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 47,839 shares of company stock valued at $12,651,601. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of VRSN stock opened at $249.54 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $254.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $270.67. The stock has a market cap of $23.13 billion, a PE ratio of 29.08 and a beta of 0.78. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1 year low of $189.65 and a 1 year high of $310.60.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $419.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $416.71 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 40.66% and a net margin of 49.86%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.07 earnings per share.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on VRSN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on VeriSign in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 target price on shares of VeriSign in a report on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Zacks Research upgraded VeriSign to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Monday, December 1st. One research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, VeriSign currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $281.67.

VeriSign 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.