D James Bidzos Sells 5,000 Shares of VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Stock

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) CEO D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.79, for a total transaction of $1,208,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 425,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,784,687.21. The trade was a 1.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

D James Bidzos also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, December 17th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.25, for a total transaction of $488,500.00.
• On Wednesday, December 10th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.07, for a total value of $484,140.00.
• On Tuesday, December 9th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.59, for a total transaction of $1,222,950.00.
• On Wednesday, November 19th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.05, for a total value of $492,100.00.
• On Tuesday, November 18th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.05, for a total value of $1,250,250.00.
• On Wednesday, November 12th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.27, for a total transaction of $502,540.00.
• On Tuesday, November 11th, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.14, for a total value of $1,240,700.00.
• On Wednesday, October 22nd, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.54, for a total transaction of $523,080.00.
• On Tuesday, October 21st, D James Bidzos sold 5,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $267.43, for a total value of $1,337,150.00.
• On Wednesday, October 15th, D James Bidzos sold 2,000 shares of VeriSign stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.06, for a total transaction of $528,120.00.

VeriSign Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRSN traded up $1.27 on Thursday, reaching $244.39. The company had a trading volume of 799,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 879,630. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.48 and a beta of 0.78. The company’s fifty day moving average is $249.50 and its 200-day moving average is $268.82. VeriSign, Inc. has a 1-year low of $191.12 and a 1-year high of $310.60.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.02. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 40.66% and a net margin of 49.86%.The business had revenue of $419.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.71 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.07 earnings per share. VeriSign’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis.

VeriSign Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th were paid a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 18th. VeriSign’s payout ratio is presently 35.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VRSN shares. Robert W. Baird set a $325.00 price objective on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VeriSign in a report on Monday. Zacks Research upgraded VeriSign to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of VeriSign in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of VeriSign in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $270.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $281.67.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On VeriSign

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VRSN. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in VeriSign in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 56.5% during the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 97 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in shares of VeriSign by 112.5% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 102 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 92.90% 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.