VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Sold by Abacus FCF Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Abacus FCF Advisors trimmed its VeriSign stake by 31.2%, selling 21,419 shares and leaving 47,287 shares valued at about $11.49 million; overall institutional ownership stands near 92.9%.
• VeriSign reported a Q1 beat (EPS $2.34 vs. $2.30; revenue $428.9M vs. $424.5M), raised/narrowed FY2026 guidance, and prompted analyst target upgrades (e.g., Baird $355, Citi $320; consensus ~$317.67).
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share (1.2% yield) and continues buybacks, but recent insider sales and some institutional trimming have contributed to post‑earnings profit‑taking and near‑term downside risk.

Abacus FCF Advisors LLC trimmed its position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 31.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 47,287 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 21,419 shares during the quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC owned about 0.05% of VeriSign worth $11,488,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 8.1% in 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 during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,253,980 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,189,285,000 after purchasing an additional 321,737 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 13.8% in 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 during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,049,235 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $293,335,000 after purchasing an additional 44,743 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its holdings in VeriSign by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 965,600 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $269,953,000 after purchasing an additional 105,532 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of VRSN stock opened at $269.20 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $246.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $246.75. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $208.86 and a one year high of $310.60. The firm has a market cap of $24.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.75 and a beta of 0.70.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $428.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.50 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 49.95% and a negative return on equity of 40.69%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.10 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that VeriSign, Inc. will post 9.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio is 36.78%.

VeriSign News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting VeriSign this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and raised guidance — VeriSign reported Q1 revenue and EPS above street expectations and raised/narrowed FY2026 revenue and operating-income guidance, driven by domain growth and margin expansion; that beat initially supported the stock. Business Wire: Q1 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts lift targets — Multiple firms raised forecasts and price targets after the print, including Robert W. Baird boosting its target to $355 (outperform), which signals some sell‑side conviction in continued domain growth and cash returns. Benzinga: Analysts Raise Forecasts
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raises price target (small upside) — JPMorgan nudged its target to $278 and kept a neutral rating, a moderate endorsement that tempers downside risk from the print. Benzinga: JPMorgan Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend and capital returns remain intact — VeriSign declared a quarterly dividend ($0.81) and continues share‑repurchase activity, supporting the income/cash‑return story but unlikely to move the stock materially on its own.
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry backdrop — DNIB reported global domain registrations rose sequentially, reinforcing the secular demand picture for registry services. Business Wire: DNIB Domain Report
• Negative Sentiment: Investor focus on renewal-mix and forward growth — Post‑earnings selling appears tied to management commentary about tougher renewal comparisons later in 2026 (a higher mix of first‑time renewals) and uncertainty over domain net‑adds cadence, prompting repositioning and profit‑taking. Quiver Quant: Post‑Earnings Slide
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and positioning shifts — Recent disclosures show heavy insider sales activity and mixed institutional flows (some large funds trimming positions), which can amplify near‑term downside pressure after a rally.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 498 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.06, for a total transaction of $134,489.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 38,202 shares in the company, valued at $10,316,832.12. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,490 shares of company stock worth $626,690. 0.56% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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