VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) Upgraded at StockNews.com

by · The Cerbat Gem

StockNews.com upgraded shares of VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN – Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Thursday morning.

VRSN has been the topic of several other reports. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of VeriSign from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Baird R W raised VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on VeriSign from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday.

View Our Latest Research Report on VRSN

VeriSign Price Performance

NASDAQ VRSN opened at $255.43 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $234.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $206.43. The company has a market capitalization of $24.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.93 and a beta of 0.87. VeriSign has a 1-year low of $167.05 and a 1-year high of $258.67.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The information services provider reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 43.01% and a net margin of 50.47%.

Insider Activity at VeriSign

In related news, SVP John Calys sold 447 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.75, for a total value of $103,592.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,500,586.25. This represents a 1.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of VeriSign

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of VeriSign by 127.2% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign during the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 69.8% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 253 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

About VeriSign

(Get Free Report)

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.

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