SEB Asset Management AB Buys New Stake in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• SEB Asset Management AB disclosed a new position in VeriSign, buying 72,207 shares valued at about $17.9 million in the first quarter.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted their VRSN stakes, and 92.9% of the stock is owned by institutions and hedge funds.
• Insiders have been selling shares recently, including CEO D. James Bidzos and EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto, while analysts remain broadly positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $325.25.

SEB Asset Management AB purchased a new position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 72,207 shares of the information services provider's stock, valued at approximately $17,933,000. SEB Asset Management AB owned 0.08% of VeriSign as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRSN. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in VeriSign by 429.2% during the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 127 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in VeriSign by 25.3% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 788.0% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 222 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the period. Finally, Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac acquired a new position in VeriSign in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,000. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.23, for a total value of $67,307.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,051 shares in the company, valued at $9,706,010.73. This trade represents a 0.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 3,300 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.09, for a total value of $878,097.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 422,839 shares in the company, valued at $112,513,229.51. This represents a 0.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 26,300 shares of company stock worth $7,125,942. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on VRSN shares. Wedbush started coverage on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $318.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of VeriSign from $285.00 to $308.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $325.25.

VeriSign Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $277.61 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.26 billion, a PE ratio of 30.68 and a beta of 0.71. VeriSign, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $208.86 and a fifty-two week high of $312.48. The company has a fifty day moving average of $278.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $258.66.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $428.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.50 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.95% and a negative return on equity of 39.98%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.10 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current year.

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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