D James Bidzos Sells 2,000 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) Stock

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.35, for a total value of $562,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 515,772 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $145,112,452.20. This trade represents a 0.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

D James Bidzos also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, July 15th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.08, for a total value of $1,410,400.00.
• On Wednesday, July 9th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.29, for a total value of $578,580.00.
• On Tuesday, July 8th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.82, for a total value of $1,424,100.00.
• On Wednesday, June 18th, D James Bidzos sold 4,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.87, for a total value of $1,127,480.00.
• On Tuesday, June 17th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.67, for a total value of $1,418,350.00.
• On Wednesday, June 11th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.28, for a total value of $558,560.00.
• On Tuesday, June 10th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.71, for a total transaction of $1,383,550.00.
• On Wednesday, May 21st, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.66, for a total transaction of $561,320.00.
• On Tuesday, May 20th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.40, for a total transaction of $1,402,000.00.

VeriSign Stock Performance

VRSN stock traded down $2.41 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $280.86. 499,780 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 756,662. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $280.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $251.02. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52 week low of $172.49 and a 52 week high of $291.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.37 billion, a PE ratio of 34.33 and a beta of 0.78.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10. The business had revenue of $402.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $400.44 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 50.23% and a negative return on equity of 41.37%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.92 EPS.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a -- dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.65%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VRSN. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its position 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 during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its stake in shares of VeriSign by 2.5% during the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 1,506 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $382,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. increased its stake in shares of VeriSign by 1.8% during the first quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 2,183 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $554,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings 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 valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 32.3% during the first quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 172 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRSN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st.

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.

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