Allianz Asset Management GmbH Raises Stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)

Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 180.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 113,496 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 73,061 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned approximately 0.12% of VeriSign worth $28,813,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of VeriSign by 35.6% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,746 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $697,000 after purchasing an additional 721 shares during the period. Cache Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter valued at about $685,000. Berkshire Hathaway Inc grew its stake in shares of VeriSign by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc now owns 13,271,457 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $2,746,661,000 after acquiring an additional 455,844 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of VeriSign by 358.9% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 70,017 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $17,775,000 after acquiring an additional 54,759 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OMNI 360 Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of VeriSign in the first quarter valued at about $329,000. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 501 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $287.10, for a total value of $143,837.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,769 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,843,479.90. The trade was a 1.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.35, for a total value of $562,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 515,772 shares in the company, valued at $145,112,452.20. This represents a 0.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 40,004 shares of company stock worth $11,278,592 over the last 90 days. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on VRSN. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 12th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st.

VeriSign Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of VRSN stock traded down $2.69 on Thursday, reaching $286.67. The company had a trading volume of 825,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 589,375. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $172.49 and a one year high of $291.54. The business's 50-day moving average is $281.58 and its 200 day moving average is $254.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.92 billion, a PE ratio of 35.05 and a beta of 0.78.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The information services provider reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.01. VeriSign had a net margin of 50.23% and a negative return on equity of 41.37%. The firm's revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.01 EPS.

VeriSign announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, July 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.11 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the information services provider to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.07%. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.65%.

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.