Global X Japan Co. Ltd. Buys 4,666 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• Global X Japan boosted its stake in VeriSign by 401.9% in Q4, buying 4,666 shares to hold 5,827 shares worth about $1.416 million.
• VeriSign posted Q earnings of $2.23 EPS (missing the $2.29 consensus) and revenue of $425.3M (slightly above estimates), with revenue up 7.6% year-over-year; the company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.81 ($3.24 annual, ~1.3% yield).
• Company insiders have sold 9,490 shares (~$2.34M) in the last three months, while Wall Street sentiment is mixed with a consensus "Hold" rating and an average price target of $292.00.

Global X Japan Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 401.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,827 shares of the information services provider's stock after buying an additional 4,666 shares during the quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd.'s holdings in VeriSign were worth $1,416,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,779 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,616,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management boosted its position in VeriSign by 11.6% in the third quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 452 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its stake in VeriSign by 51.5% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 147 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WealthCollab LLC increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 19.1% during the third quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 312 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

VeriSign Price Performance

Shares of VeriSign stock opened at $250.80 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $235.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $249.34. VeriSign, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $208.86 and a fifty-two week high of $310.60. The firm has a market cap of $23.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.47 and a beta of 0.76.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.29 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $425.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.04 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 40.40% and a net margin of 49.84%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.00 EPS.

VeriSign Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th were given a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 19th. This is a positive change from VeriSign's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is 36.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of VeriSign from $337.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Zacks Research raised VeriSign from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, VeriSign has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $292.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 332 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.62, for a total value of $79,885.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 39,696 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,551,651.52. This trade represents a 0.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.28, for a total transaction of $496,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 414,099 shares in the company, valued at $102,812,499.72. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 9,490 shares of company stock valued at $2,338,621 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Company Profile

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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