Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 25.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 77,564 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 26,990 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned 0.08% of VeriSign worth $19,691,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 13,000.0% in the 1st quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 131 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 106.5% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 159 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 48.8% during 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 during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the first quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Stock Down 0.9%

VeriSign stock traded down $2.41 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $280.86. 499,780 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 756,807. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.37 billion, a PE ratio of 34.33 and a beta of 0.78. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $280.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $251.02. VeriSign, Inc. has a twelve month low of $172.49 and a twelve month high of $291.54.

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

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.71, for a total transaction of $1,383,550.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 544,772 shares of the company's stock, valued at $150,743,860.12. This trade represents a 0.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 40,004 shares of company stock worth $11,278,592. 0.84% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on VRSN shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th.

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.