VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.04 EPS

Key Points

• VeriSign beat expectations, reporting Q EPS of $2.34 (vs. $2.30 consensus) and revenue of $428.9M (vs. $424.5M), and the stock rose to $276.95 on above-average volume.
• The board raised the quarterly dividend to $0.81 (annualized $3.24), up from $0.77, implying a ~1.2% yield and a dividend payout ratio of about 36.8%.
• Analysts hold a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with a $297 price target, while insiders sold modest stakes and institutional investors own roughly 92.9% of the shares.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN - Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The information services provider reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.04, FiscalAI reports. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 40.40% and a net margin of 49.84%.The business had revenue of $428.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $424.50 million.

VeriSign Price Performance

VRSN traded up $7.12 during trading on Thursday, hitting $276.95. 1,029,882 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 816,601. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.44 and a beta of 0.70. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $244.46 and a 200 day moving average of $246.72. VeriSign has a 12-month low of $208.86 and a 12-month high of $310.60.

VeriSign Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th were issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from VeriSign's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. VeriSign's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.78%.

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, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.08, for a total value of $124,041.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,501,044.20. This trade represents a 1.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,490 shares of company stock worth $626,690. 0.56% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of VeriSign

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VRSN. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of VeriSign by 25.3% in 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. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its stake in VeriSign by 12.3% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in VeriSign by 104.5% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,125 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,047,000 after buying an additional 2,108 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in VeriSign by 122.1% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,358 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $852,000 after acquiring an additional 1,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in VeriSign by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,346 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $2,373,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research upgraded VeriSign from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings raised VeriSign from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of VeriSign from $280.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of VeriSign from $270.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $297.00.

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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