Ethic Inc. Sells 3,318 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)

Ethic Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 29.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,958 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 3,318 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in VeriSign were worth $1,647,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in VeriSign during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of VeriSign by 127.2% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in VeriSign in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management boosted its stake in VeriSign by 69.8% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 253 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on VeriSign from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. StockNews.com raised VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 12th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of VeriSign from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th.

VeriSign Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of VRSN stock opened at $279.59 on Tuesday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12-month low of $168.51 and a 12-month high of $288.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $253.30 and a 200-day moving average of $221.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.95 and a beta of 0.80.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last posted 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. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 43.01% and a net margin of 50.47%. The firm had revenue of $402.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $400.44 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.92 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a -- dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other VeriSign news, Director Yehuda Ari Buchalter sold 600 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.79, for a total value of $170,274.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,735 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,059,955.65. The trade was a 13.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP John Calys sold 400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.97, for a total transaction of $112,788.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,335 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,579,769.95. This trade represents a 1.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,447 shares of company stock valued at $386,654. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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