Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group cut its VeriSign stake by 4.7% in the first quarter, but still held 204,658 shares valued at about $50.8 million. Institutional investors remain heavily involved, owning 92.9% of the company.
• Analysts are generally constructive on VeriSign, with JPMorgan, Baird, and Citigroup all raising price targets. The stock currently carries a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a target price of $327.67.
• VeriSign reported better-than-expected quarterly results, including EPS of $2.34 and revenue of $428.9 million, and it also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share. CEO D. James Bidzos and EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto also recently sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 4.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 204,658 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 10,028 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.22% of VeriSign worth $50,829,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of VeriSign by 4.6% during the first quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 40,456 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $10,054,000 after acquiring an additional 1,788 shares during the last quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC increased its holdings in VeriSign by 20.5% during the first quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC now owns 1,821 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $452,000 after buying an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in VeriSign in the first quarter worth about $234,000. Meitav Investment House Ltd. boosted its stake in VeriSign by 86.9% in the first quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd. now owns 20,786 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $5,162,000 after acquiring an additional 9,664 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of VeriSign by 19.2% during the 1st quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 1,499 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VRSN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of VeriSign from $285.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. 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. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $327.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 3,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 422,839 shares in the company, valued at $112,513,229.51. This trade represents a 0.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 250 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.23, for a total value of $67,307.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 36,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,706,010.73. The trade was a 0.69% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 26,798 shares of company stock worth $7,260,432. Company insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $270.11 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.58 billion, a PE ratio of 29.85 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $279.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $257.49. VeriSign, Inc. has a twelve month low of $208.86 and a twelve month high of $312.48.

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

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.80%.

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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