VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Price Target Cut to $200.00

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) had its price target dropped by equities research analysts at Robert W. Baird from $215.00 to $200.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the information services provider’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 9.48% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on VRSN. StockNews.com downgraded shares of VeriSign from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of VeriSign from $237.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd.

VeriSign Trading Down 1.5 %

VeriSign stock opened at $182.68 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.07 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $189.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $200.25. VeriSign has a 1-year low of $181.01 and a 1-year high of $229.72.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $384.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $381.85 million. VeriSign had a net margin of 54.74% and a negative return on equity of 46.56%. VeriSign’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.70 EPS.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 613 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.33, for a total transaction of $119,737.29. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,427,122.19. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other VeriSign news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 2,875 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $5,999,500.05. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 613 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.33, for a total transaction of $119,737.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,143 shares in the company, valued at $8,427,122.19. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,877 shares of company stock worth $2,878,864. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On VeriSign

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of VeriSign by 52.0% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 152 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in VeriSign by 3.6% in the third quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,721 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its stake in VeriSign by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,960 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $610,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in VeriSign by 0.8% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 8,571 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,736,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in VeriSign by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,129 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,262,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by 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.