Swedbank AB Has $19.36 Million Stock Holdings in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• Swedbank AB increased its holdings in VeriSign, Inc. by 12.0%, owning 67,018 shares valued at $19.36 million at the end of the latest quarter.
• The company's board authorized a $1.11 billion share repurchase program, allowing for the reacquisition of up to 4.1% of its shares, indicating potential undervaluation.
• VeriSign recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share, representing an annualized payout of $3.08 and a dividend yield of 1.1%.

Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 12.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 67,018 shares of the information services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,157 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned 0.07% of VeriSign worth $19,355,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new stake in VeriSign during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of VeriSign by 56.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 97 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of VeriSign by 13,000.0% during the 1st quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 131 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in VeriSign during the first quarter worth $34,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in VeriSign by 106.5% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 159 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 501 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.28, for a total value of $141,422.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 35,191 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,933,715.48. The trade was a 1.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.48, for a total value of $576,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 476,439 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $137,443,122.72. This represents a 0.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 45,706 shares of company stock worth $12,733,269. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of VeriSign stock opened at $282.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.68 and a beta of 0.79. The company's 50 day moving average price is $277.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $270.13. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52-week low of $175.62 and a 52-week high of $310.60.

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

VeriSign declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.11 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the information services provider to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on VRSN. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $277.50.

VeriSign Company Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding VRSN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.