Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Sells 7,420 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• Massachusetts Financial Services cut its VeriSign stake by 9.1%, selling 7,420 shares and retaining 73,873 shares worth about $17.95 million (≈0.08% of the company).
• An insider, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto, sold 498 shares on April 14 under a Rule 10b5‑1 plan; insiders have sold 2,490 shares (~$626,690) in the last 90 days and own 0.84% of the stock.
• VeriSign missed EPS ($2.23 vs. $2.29) but topped revenue estimates at $425.3M (+7.6% YoY), raised its quarterly dividend to $0.81 (annual $3.24, yield 1.2%), and carries a consensus Moderate Buy rating with an average target of $297.

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA cut its holdings in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 9.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 73,873 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 7,420 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 0.08% of VeriSign worth $17,947,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in VeriSign during the fourth quarter worth about $283,000. Willis Investment Counsel lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 57.5% during the fourth quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 8,493 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $2,063,000 after acquiring an additional 3,102 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 242.7% during the fourth quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 1,549 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 1,097 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,915 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $465,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 3,527 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $857,000 after acquiring an additional 502 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at VeriSign

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.06, for a total transaction of $134,489.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 38,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,316,832.12. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 2,490 shares of company stock valued at $626,690 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRSN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded VeriSign from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Citigroup lifted their target price on VeriSign from $280.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded VeriSign from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $297.00.

VeriSign Price Performance

Shares of VeriSign stock opened at $273.85 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $24.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.08 and a beta of 0.70. The stock's 50-day moving average is $240.26 and its 200-day moving average is $247.07. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $208.86 and a one year high of $310.60.

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

VeriSign Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th were issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a positive change from VeriSign's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 19th. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.78%.

VeriSign 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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