Captrust Financial Advisors Has $159.29 Million Stake in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 13.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 655,644 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 79,249 shares during the quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors owned 0.71% of VeriSign worth $159,289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VRSN. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in VeriSign by 429.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 127 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new stake in VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in VeriSign by 25.3% in the 1st 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. Activest Wealth Management raised its position in VeriSign by 788.0% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 222 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new stake in VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at $58,000. 92.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

VeriSign Price Performance

NASDAQ VRSN opened at $273.87 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.26 and a beta of 0.69. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $208.86 and a one year high of $312.48. The business's fifty day moving average is $283.85 and its 200-day moving average is $255.99.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $428.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $424.50 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 39.98% and a net margin of 49.95%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.10 EPS. Research analysts expect that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 19th. VeriSign's payout ratio is presently 35.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRSN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup increased their price target on VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings raised VeriSign from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on VeriSign from $273.00 to $278.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $317.67.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 500 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.54, for a total transaction of $141,770.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 36,551 shares in the company, valued at $10,363,670.54. The trade was a 1.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.29, for a total value of $938,157.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 436,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $123,961,527.31. The trade was a 0.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 13,596 shares of company stock worth $3,834,345 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

About VeriSign

VeriSign, Inc NASDAQ: VRSN is an internet infrastructure company that operates critical components of the global Domain Name System (DNS) and provides cybersecurity-related services. The company is best known as the authoritative registry operator for the .com and .net top-level domains, maintaining the central databases and zone files that enable domain name resolution for millions of websites. VeriSign's registry role is performed under contractual agreements with Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and involves high-availability, highly secure operations to support continuous internet connectivity.

In addition to its registry business, VeriSign offers a suite of services designed to protect and accelerate DNS and internet traffic for enterprises and service providers.

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