VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) Shares Sold by Sigma Planning Corp

Sigma Planning Corp trimmed its stake in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN - Free Report) by 86.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,835 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 11,655 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp's holdings in VeriSign were worth $378,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in VRSN. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in VeriSign by 91.7% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 347 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Czech National Bank grew its position in VeriSign by 46.3% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 15,683 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $3,176,000 after buying an additional 4,962 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC grew its position in VeriSign by 4.1% during the third quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,439 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $899,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp grew its position in VeriSign by 63.5% during the third quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 5,765 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,168,000 after buying an additional 2,238 shares during the period. Finally, Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund grew its position in VeriSign by 0.8% during the third quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 39,529 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $8,006,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. 92.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VRSN. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of VeriSign from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of VeriSign from $237.00 to $236.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of VeriSign from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of VRSN traded down $7.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $175.48. The stock had a trading volume of 1,931,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 646,443. The firm has a market cap of $17.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.56 and a beta of 0.88. VeriSign, Inc. has a 12 month low of $174.51 and a 12 month high of $229.72. The business has a fifty day moving average of $189.29 and a 200 day moving average of $199.97.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The information services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.06. VeriSign had a net margin of 55.04% and a negative return on equity of 47.39%. The business had revenue of $384.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $381.85 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.70 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 614 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total transaction of $116,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 42,569 shares in the company, valued at $8,088,110. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Todd B. Strubbe sold 9,423 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.21, for a total transaction of $1,820,617.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 111,551 shares in the company, valued at $21,552,768.71. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 614 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total transaction of $116,660.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 42,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,088,110. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 14,877 shares of company stock worth $2,878,864. 0.94% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.