VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Bought by AXQ Capital LP

Key Points

• AXQ Capital LP increased its VeriSign stake by 228.7% in the fourth quarter, ending with 7,653 shares valued at about $1.86 million.
• VeriSign reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.34 versus $2.30 expected and revenue of $428.9 million, up 6.6% year over year.
• The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, and analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $317.67.

AXQ Capital LP grew its holdings in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 228.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,653 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,325 shares during the period. AXQ Capital LP's holdings in VeriSign were worth $1,859,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRSN. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of VeriSign by 429.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 127 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 25.3% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of VeriSign in the third quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 788.0% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 222 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Trading Up 3.9%

Shares of NASDAQ VRSN opened at $296.59 on Tuesday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12-month low of $208.86 and a 12-month high of $312.48. The company has a market cap of $26.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.77 and a beta of 0.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $275.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $253.27.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.04. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 39.98% and a net margin of 49.95%.The firm had revenue of $428.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $424.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were paid 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 1.1%. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.80%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.06, for a total transaction of $134,489.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 38,202 shares in the company, valued at $10,316,832.12. This trade represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.02, for a total value of $1,355,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 35,195 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,538,548.90. This represents a 12.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 6,328 shares of company stock valued at $1,705,928 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

VeriSign Company 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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