TD Asset Management Inc Has $147.60 Million Stake in VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN

Key Points

• TD Asset Management trimmed its VeriSign stake by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, but still held 607,535 shares valued at about $147.6 million.
• VeriSign reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.34 versus estimates of $2.30 and revenue of $428.9 million, up 6.6% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, while analysts maintained a generally positive view with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $317.67.

TD Asset Management Inc trimmed its holdings in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 607,535 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 22,587 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc owned 0.66% of VeriSign worth $147,601,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VRSN. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in VeriSign during the 4th quarter valued at $312,900,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in VeriSign by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,443,710 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $3,199,318,000 after purchasing an additional 861,065 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in VeriSign by 394.1% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 552,008 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $154,325,000 after purchasing an additional 440,289 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in VeriSign by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,523,495 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $985,063,000 after purchasing an additional 426,492 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its holdings in VeriSign by 191.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 626,570 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $152,225,000 after purchasing an additional 411,728 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

VeriSign Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRSN opened at $293.79 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $279.09 and a 200-day moving average of $254.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.46 and a beta of 0.69. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52 week low of $208.86 and a 52 week high of $312.48.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $428.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $424.50 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 39.98% and a net margin of 49.95%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on VRSN shares. Citigroup raised their price target on VeriSign from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings raised VeriSign from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on VeriSign from $273.00 to $278.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on VeriSign from $305.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Zacks Research raised VeriSign from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, VeriSign presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $317.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 transaction of $1,355,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 35,195 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,538,548.90. This trade represents a 12.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO D James Bidzos sold 3,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $130,690,172.33. This represents 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 10,128 shares of company stock worth $2,834,304. 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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