VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) Stake Lowered by Wellington Management Group LLP

Wellington Management Group LLP lowered its holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 66.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 46,683 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 93,542 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP's holdings in VeriSign were worth $9,662,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of VeriSign by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 135,520 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $28,047,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117 shares during the period. 111 Capital acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at about $516,000. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC purchased a new position in VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $254,000. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH acquired a new position in VeriSign during the fourth quarter worth $3,348,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in VeriSign during the fourth quarter worth $45,526,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.90% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Price Performance

VeriSign stock traded down $1.27 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $274.49. 582,193 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 756,804. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $264.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $231.95. The company has a market capitalization of $25.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.31 and a beta of 0.80. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12-month low of $172.49 and a 12-month high of $288.95.

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

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a -- dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen raised VeriSign from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on VeriSign from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on VeriSign from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.40, for a total transaction of $1,402,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 553,625 shares in the company, valued at $155,236,450. The trade was a 0.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP John Calys sold 400 shares of the business's 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,335 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,579,769.95. This represents a 1.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,002 shares of company stock worth $2,525,659 over the last quarter. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.