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

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

VRSN has been the subject of several other research reports. Citigroup decreased their price objective on VeriSign from $237.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com cut VeriSign from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd.

VeriSign Stock Performance

Shares of VRSN opened at $182.68 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $18.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.07 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $189.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $200.25. VeriSign has a one year low of $181.01 and a one year high of $229.72.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The information services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $384.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $381.85 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 46.56% and a net margin of 54.74%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.70 EPS.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total value of $116,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total value of $116,660.00. Following 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 accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 613 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.33, for a total value of $119,737.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,427,122.19. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 14,877 shares of company stock valued at $2,878,864. 0.94% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On VeriSign

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Alta Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of VeriSign in the first quarter valued at approximately $12,830,000. Equitable Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 1.2% in the first quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 7,227 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,370,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 2.5% in the first quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 21,086 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $3,996,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the first quarter valued at approximately $343,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 20.5% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 288,083 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $54,595,000 after purchasing an additional 49,105 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.