Squarepoint Ops LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)

Squarepoint Ops LLC lessened its holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 80.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,220 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 9,178 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC's holdings in VeriSign were worth $459,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in VeriSign by 127.2% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management grew its position in VeriSign by 69.8% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 253 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other news, SVP John Calys sold 400 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.97, for a total value of $112,788.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,335 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,579,769.95. This trade represents a 1.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Yehuda Ari Buchalter sold 600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.79, for a total value of $170,274.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,735 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,059,955.65. This represents a 13.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,002 shares of company stock worth $2,525,659. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on VRSN shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 12th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of VeriSign from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th.

VeriSign Trading Up 2.6%

NASDAQ:VRSN traded up $7.13 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $285.02. 670,867 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 756,691. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.63 and a beta of 0.80. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $172.49 and a one year high of $288.95. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $265.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $232.92.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.10. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 43.01% and a net margin of 50.47%. The company had revenue of $402.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $400.44 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.92 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a -- dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. VeriSign's payout ratio is 37.65%.

VeriSign 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.