Nuveen Asset Management LLC Sells 14,043 Shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC lowered its position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 265,113 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 14,043 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 0.28% of VeriSign worth $54,868,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new position in VeriSign in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in VeriSign in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in VeriSign by 127.2% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in VeriSign in the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management raised its position in VeriSign by 69.8% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 253 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.90% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP John Calys sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.97, for a total transaction of $112,788.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,335 shares in the company, valued at $6,579,769.95. This represents a 1.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Yehuda Ari Buchalter sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.79, for a total transaction of $170,274.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,735 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,059,955.65. This represents a 13.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,447 shares of company stock worth $386,654. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of VRSN stock opened at $283.14 on Monday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12-month low of $168.79 and a 12-month high of $288.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.39 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $256.53 and a 200-day moving average of $224.44.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $402.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $400.44 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 43.01% and a net margin of 50.47%. The company's revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.92 EPS.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a -- dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.65%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 12th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of VeriSign from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of VeriSign from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th.

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.

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