Retirement Systems of Alabama Decreases Stock Position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its position in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 4.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,326 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 789 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $3,481,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VRSN. MML Investors Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 602.6% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 11,712 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,225,000 after buying an additional 10,045 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in VeriSign by 26.3% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 580,613 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $110,293,000 after acquiring an additional 120,958 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd raised its holdings in VeriSign by 89.8% in the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 21,718 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $4,126,000 after acquiring an additional 10,277 shares during the last quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in VeriSign by 73.3% in the 3rd quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. now owns 19,051 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,619,000 after purchasing an additional 8,055 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 56.3% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 17,495 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,323,000 after purchasing an additional 6,303 shares during the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

VeriSign Stock Performance

VRSN opened at $193.44 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.59 billion, a PE ratio of 22.49 and a beta of 0.92. VeriSign, Inc. has a one year low of $167.04 and a one year high of $208.04. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $186.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $182.75.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The information services provider reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $390.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $390.19 million. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 45.59% and a net margin of 55.74%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.83 EPS.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Robert W. Baird upgraded VeriSign from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $200.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Baird R W raised shares of VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th.

Insider Buying and Selling at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 2,092 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.43, for a total value of $402,563.56. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,157 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,033,391.51. The trade was a 7.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Thomas C. Indelicarto sold 1,228 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total value of $233,320.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,382,670. This represents a 3.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,776 shares of company stock valued at $1,102,524 over the last 90 days. 0.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.