APG Asset Management N.V. Has $31.14 Million Stake in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• APG Asset Management N.V. has decreased its holdings in VeriSign, Inc. by 11.2%, now owning 132,495 shares valued at approximately $31 million.
• VeriSign recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share, representing an annualized yield of 1.1%.
• Despite recent insider selling, including CEO D James Bidzos selling shares worth over $1.4 million, institutional investors continue to hold a significant portion, with over 92.90% of the stock owned by them.

APG Asset Management N.V. lessened its position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 11.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 132,495 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 16,685 shares during the period. APG Asset Management N.V. owned approximately 0.14% of VeriSign worth $31,139,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its stake in shares of VeriSign by 2.5% in 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 buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC raised its position in VeriSign by 0.3% during the first quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,461 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $3,671,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in VeriSign by 2.3% during the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,334 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $593,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in VeriSign by 3.1% during the first quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,861 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $472,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on VRSN shares. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $277.50.

Insider Activity at VeriSign

In other news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.82, for a total value of $1,424,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 526,772 shares in the company, valued at approximately $150,035,201.04. This represents a 0.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders sold 47,205 shares of company stock valued at $13,084,682. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of VRSN traded up $3.60 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $269.99. The stock had a trading volume of 1,189,446 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,207,596. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12 month low of $175.62 and a 12 month high of $310.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.22 billion, a PE ratio of 32.22 and a beta of 0.78. The company's 50-day moving average is $278.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $264.16.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The information services provider reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.01. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 40.87% and a net margin of 50.05%.The company had revenue of $409.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $410.35 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.01 EPS. VeriSign's revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. VeriSign has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS.

VeriSign declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, July 24th that permits the company to repurchase $1.11 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the information services provider to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 19th. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.75%.

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.