Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $41.95 Million Holdings in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 203,625 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 3,021 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $41,945,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in VeriSign by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 272,103 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $56,042,000 after buying an additional 25,639 shares during the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP lifted its position in VeriSign by 142.0% in the 4th quarter. Duality Advisers LP now owns 29,874 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $6,153,000 after acquiring an additional 17,529 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC lifted its position in VeriSign by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 72,544 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $14,941,000 after acquiring an additional 9,888 shares in the last quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP boosted its stake in VeriSign by 41.4% during the 3rd quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP now owns 1,888 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $382,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its holdings in VeriSign by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 85,196 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $17,547,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

VeriSign Stock Down 0.2 %

VeriSign stock opened at $175.11 on Tuesday. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52 week low of $174.28 and a 52 week high of $229.72. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $188.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $199.66. The stock has a market cap of $17.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.51 and a beta of 0.88.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The information services provider reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.06. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 47.21% and a net margin of 55.04%. The business had revenue of $384.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $381.85 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.70 earnings per share. VeriSign’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on VRSN shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on VeriSign from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Citigroup lowered their price target on 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 upgraded shares of VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 614 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. 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 41,955 shares in the company, valued at $7,971,450. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 614 shares of VeriSign stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total value of $116,660.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 41,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,971,450. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 2,875 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.19, for a total value of $558,296.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 30,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,999,500.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,877 shares of company stock worth $2,878,864 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

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.