VeriSign, Inc. $VRSN Shares Sold by Shariaportfolio Inc.

Key Points

• Shariaportfolio Inc. has reduced its stake in VeriSign, Inc. by 7.2%, now holding 11,975 shares valued at approximately $3.46 million.
• Institutional investors own a significant portion (92.90%) of VeriSign's stock, with several firms increasing their holdings in recent reporting periods.
• VeriSign recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share and authorized a share repurchase plan to buy back $1.11 billion of its shares.

Shariaportfolio Inc. lowered its stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,975 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 929 shares during the quarter. VeriSign comprises about 1.5% of Shariaportfolio Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Shariaportfolio Inc.'s holdings in VeriSign were worth $3,458,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VRSN. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 42.6% in the first quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 2,318 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $573,000 after purchasing an additional 693 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 106.5% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 159 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $393,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in VeriSign in the 1st quarter valued at about $233,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,017 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $259,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VRSN. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of VeriSign from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, VeriSign currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $277.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other VeriSign news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 501 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.28, for a total transaction of $141,422.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy Tomlinson sold 700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total value of $189,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 15,284 shares in the company, valued at $4,126,680. This represents a 4.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 37,704 shares of company stock worth $10,441,377. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

VeriSign Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ VRSN opened at $270.29 on Wednesday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $275.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $273.47. The company has a market cap of $25.25 billion, a PE ratio of 32.25 and a beta of 0.79. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1 year low of $175.62 and a 1 year high of $310.60.

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. The firm had revenue of $409.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $410.35 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 40.87% and a net margin of 50.05%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.01 EPS. VeriSign has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS.

VeriSign Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. 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%.

VeriSign declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan 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 reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.