Optimize Financial Inc Invests $1.94 Million in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• Optimize Financial Inc has acquired a new position in VeriSign, Inc., purchasing 7,651 shares worth approximately $1.94 million, making it their 6th largest holding.
• VeriSign recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.77 per share and announced a stock buyback plan authorizing up to $1.11 billion in repurchases.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Buy" for VeriSign, with Robert W. Baird increasing its target price to $305.00 from $285.00.

Optimize Financial Inc purchased a new stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 7,651 shares of the information services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,942,000. VeriSign accounts for 0.7% of Optimize Financial Inc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VRSN. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of VeriSign by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 276,060 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $57,133,000 after purchasing an additional 6,628 shares during the period. Fiduciary Trust Co raised its stake in shares of VeriSign by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 1,722 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $356,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of VeriSign by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 5,226 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,082,000 after purchasing an additional 1,249 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at about $367,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of VeriSign by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 6,414 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,327,000 after purchasing an additional 758 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSN traded down $3.85 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $285.52. The company had a trading volume of 449,907 shares, compared to its average volume of 863,947. The stock has a market cap of $26.67 billion, a PE ratio of 34.07 and a beta of 0.79. The business's 50 day moving average price is $277.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $268.25. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1-year low of $175.62 and a 1-year high of $310.60.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The information services provider reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $409.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $410.35 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 50.05% and a negative return on equity of 40.87%. VeriSign's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. VeriSign has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. VeriSign's payout ratio is currently 36.75%.

VeriSign declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, July 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.11 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the information services provider to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $277.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at VeriSign

In other news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.15, for a total transaction of $1,320,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 508,772 shares in the company, valued at $134,392,123.80. The trade was a 0.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 47,706 shares of company stock worth $13,265,439. 0.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.