VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Sold by Intech Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Intech Investment Management LLC significantly reduced its stake in VeriSign, Inc. by 53.0%, selling 55,266 shares and holding 49,022 shares valued at approximately $12.4 million.
• VeriSign reported $2.21 earnings per share for the last quarter, slightly surpassing expectations, and had a revenue of $409.9 million, showing a 5.9% year-over-year increase.
• The company's board authorized a $1.11 billion share buyback program, indicating confidence in the stock's valuation, while a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share was recently issued.

Intech Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 53.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 49,022 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 55,266 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.05% of VeriSign worth $12,445,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its position in VeriSign by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 1,506 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $382,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co. grew its position in VeriSign by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 2,183 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $554,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in VeriSign by 25.3% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC grew its position in VeriSign by 32.3% during the 1st quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 172 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Hohimer Wealth Management LLC grew its position in VeriSign by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,461 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $3,671,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. 92.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

VeriSign Stock Down 0.8%

NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $283.48 on Thursday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52 week low of $175.62 and a 52 week high of $310.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.48 billion, a PE ratio of 33.83 and a beta of 0.79. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $277.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $267.54.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The information services provider reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.01. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 40.87% and a net margin of 50.05%.The company had revenue of $409.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $410.35 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.01 EPS. VeriSign's revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. VeriSign has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS.

VeriSign declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.11 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the information services provider to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th were issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 19th. VeriSign's payout ratio is presently 36.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 501 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.28, for a total value of $141,422.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 35,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,933,715.48. The trade was a 1.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy Tomlinson sold 700 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total value of $189,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 15,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,126,680. The trade was a 4.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 40,706 shares of company stock worth $11,281,499. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, VeriSign has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $277.50.

About VeriSign

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.

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