Oxbow Advisors LLC Acquires New Shares in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• Oxbow Advisors acquired 27,424 VeriSign shares worth approximately $6.9 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 92.9% of the company.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $328.75; several firms recently raised their targets, including Robert W. Baird to $355.
• VeriSign reported quarterly revenue of $434.6 million, up 6% year over year, and EPS of $2.38, slightly exceeding estimates. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, equal to a 1.2% annualized yield.

Oxbow Advisors LLC acquired a new position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 27,424 shares of the information services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,899,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Danske Bank A S lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 64,246 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $15,609,000 after purchasing an additional 12,220 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS boosted its position in VeriSign by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 146,100 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $35,495,000 after purchasing an additional 22,020 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in VeriSign by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 174,140 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $41,886,000 after purchasing an additional 3,691 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in VeriSign by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 49,688 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $12,179,000 after purchasing an additional 11,249 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in VeriSign by 47.5% during the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 16,352 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $3,973,000 after purchasing an additional 5,267 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at VeriSign

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.54, for a total transaction of $141,770.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,363,670.54. The trade was a 1.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 3,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total transaction of $981,651.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 439,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $130,690,172.33. The trade was a 0.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 33,200 shares of company stock valued at $9,142,891. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRSN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of VeriSign from $308.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of VeriSign from $318.00 to $324.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $328.75.

VeriSign Stock Up 1.5%

VRSN opened at $276.74 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $272.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $263.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.02 and a beta of 0.70. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12-month low of $208.86 and a 12-month high of $312.48.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.02. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 39.20% and a net margin of 49.76%.The company had revenue of $434.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $433.19 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.21 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.56 earnings per share for the current year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.14%.

About VeriSign

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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