Banque Pictet & Cie SA Cuts Stock Holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)

Banque Pictet & Cie SA lowered its position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 9.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,790 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 4,194 shares during the period. Banque Pictet & Cie SA's holdings in VeriSign were worth $10,355,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,960 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $406,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in VeriSign by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $674,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in VeriSign by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 573 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $119,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 48.8% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 186 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 1,469 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $304,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.90% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRSN traded down $3.90 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $281.39. The stock had a trading volume of 532,590 shares, compared to its average volume of 756,534. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52-week low of $172.49 and a 52-week high of $291.54. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $281.14 and a 200 day moving average of $248.82. The stock has a market cap of $26.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.40 and a beta of 0.78.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.10 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.10. VeriSign had a net margin of 50.23% and a negative return on equity of 41.37%. The business had revenue of $402.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $400.44 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.92 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a -- dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. VeriSign's payout ratio is currently 37.65%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRSN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased 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. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 501 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.17, for a total transaction of $145,375.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 38,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,104,805.90. This trade represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Yehuda Ari Buchalter sold 600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.79, for a total transaction of $170,274.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,059,955.65. The trade was a 13.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,004 shares of company stock valued at $9,305,492 in the last quarter. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About VeriSign

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.