VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Raised to “Outperform” at Robert W. Baird

Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research note published on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has $250.00 price target on the information services provider’s stock, up from their prior price target of $200.00.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of VeriSign stock opened at $200.46 on Monday. VeriSign has a fifty-two week low of $167.04 and a fifty-two week high of $220.91. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $185.07 and a 200 day moving average of $181.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.31 and a beta of 0.92.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The information services provider reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.06. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 45.59% and a net margin of 55.74%. The business had revenue of $390.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $390.19 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 1,228 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total value of $233,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,382,670. The trade was a 3.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 2,092 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.43, for a total value of $402,563.56. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,157 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,033,391.51. The trade was a 7.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,776 shares of company stock valued at $1,102,524 in the last three months. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of VeriSign

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in VeriSign by 291.1% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 176 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in VeriSign by 117.2% during the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 202 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in VeriSign during the second quarter valued at $38,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the second quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners lifted its stake in VeriSign by 93.2% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 226 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. 92.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

VeriSign Company Profile

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.