VeriSign (VRSN) Competitors

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) and Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX) are both large-cap internet software & services companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, valuation, media sentiment, institutional ownership, risk, earnings and dividends.

Which has more risk and volatility, VRSN or EQIX?

VeriSign has a beta of 0.79, meaning that its share price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equinix has a beta of 0.92, meaning that its share price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has preferable earnings & valuation, VRSN or EQIX?

Equinix has higher revenue and earnings than VeriSign. VeriSign is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Equinix, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
VeriSign	$1.56B	15.64	$785.70M	$8.38	31.12
Equinix	$8.94B	8.76	$815M	$10.21	78.41

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in VRSN or EQIX?

92.9% of VeriSign shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.9% of Equinix shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.8% of VeriSign shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Equinix shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Does the media prefer VRSN or EQIX?

In the previous week, Equinix had 10 more articles in the media than VeriSign. MarketBeat recorded 27 mentions for Equinix and 17 mentions for VeriSign. Equinix's average media sentiment score of 1.23 beat VeriSign's score of 1.19 indicating that Equinix is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
VeriSign	12 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Equinix	18 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts recommend VRSN or EQIX?

VeriSign presently has a consensus target price of $277.50, suggesting a potential upside of 6.40%. Equinix has a consensus target price of $960.65, suggesting a potential upside of 19.99%. Given Equinix's higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Equinix is more favorable than VeriSign.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
VeriSign	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.25
Equinix	0 Sell rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	18 Buy rating(s)	4 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.96

Is VRSN or EQIX a better dividend stock?

VeriSign pays an annual dividend of $3.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Equinix pays an annual dividend of $18.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. VeriSign pays out 36.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Equinix pays out 183.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Equinix has raised its dividend for 10 consecutive years. Equinix is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Is VRSN or EQIX more profitable?

VeriSign has a net margin of 50.05% compared to Equinix's net margin of 11.11%. Equinix's return on equity of 7.22% beat VeriSign's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
VeriSign	50.05%	-40.87%	55.90%
Equinix	11.11%	7.22%	2.73%

Summary

Equinix beats VeriSign on 14 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.