VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Monday.

VRSN has been the subject of a number of other reports. Citigroup decreased their price objective 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. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of VeriSign from $215.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th.

VeriSign Price Performance

NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $169.48 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $188.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $199.39. The stock has a market cap of $16.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.82 and a beta of 0.88. VeriSign has a 1-year low of $169.36 and a 1-year high of $229.72.

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

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 613 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.05, for a total transaction of $122,017.65. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,816 shares in the company, valued at $6,930,124.80. The transaction 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 stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 111,551 shares in the company, valued at $21,552,768.71. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 613 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.05, for a total transaction of $122,017.65. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 34,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,930,124.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,877 shares of company stock valued at $2,878,864. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On VeriSign

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRSN. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $207,161,000. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of VeriSign by 14.7% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,826,836 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $369,989,000 after acquiring an additional 233,811 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of VeriSign by 99.0% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 442,523 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $89,624,000 after acquiring an additional 220,106 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of VeriSign by 471.6% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 238,978 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $49,220,000 after acquiring an additional 197,169 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of VeriSign by 13.1% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,090,068 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $220,771,000 after acquiring an additional 125,901 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

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.