SG Americas Securities LLC Has $30.45 Million Stock Position in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC increased its VeriSign stake by 59.2% in the first quarter, buying 45,584 more shares and bringing its holding to 122,623 shares valued at about $30.45 million.
• VeriSign reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $2.34 per share and revenue of $428.9 million, while revenue rose 6.6% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally positive on the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus rating and a consensus price target of $327.67; meanwhile, insiders have recently sold shares, including EVP Danny R. McPherson and Thomas C. Indelicarto.

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 59.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 122,623 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 45,584 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC owned 0.13% of VeriSign worth $30,455,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in VeriSign in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of VeriSign by 25.3% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Activest Wealth Management grew its position in VeriSign by 788.0% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 222 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRSN opened at $247.22 on Wednesday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52-week low of $208.86 and a 52-week high of $312.48. The business has a fifty day moving average of $282.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $256.20. The stock has a market cap of $22.50 billion, a PE ratio of 27.32 and a beta of 0.69.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.04. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.95% and a negative return on equity of 39.98%. The business had revenue of $428.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRSN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings raised VeriSign from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on VeriSign from $285.00 to $308.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, VeriSign presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $327.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.02, for a total value of $1,355,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 35,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,538,548.90. The trade was a 12.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.54, for a total value of $141,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 36,551 shares in the company, valued at $10,363,670.54. The trade was a 1.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 90 days, insiders sold 16,896 shares of company stock worth $4,739,271. Insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

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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