VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) Stock Holdings Increased by Gulf International Bank UK Ltd

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd lifted its stake in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 11.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,239 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 868 shares during the quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in VeriSign were worth $1,705,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VRSN. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of VeriSign by 127.2% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of VeriSign by 69.8% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 253 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. 92.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at VeriSign

In other VeriSign news, EVP Danny R. Mcpherson sold 2,092 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.43, for a total transaction of $402,563.56. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,157 shares in the company, valued at $5,033,391.51. This trade represents a 7.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP John Calys sold 447 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.75, for a total value of $103,592.25. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,500,586.25. This trade represents a 1.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VRSN opened at $237.88 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $216.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $196.11. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52 week low of $167.04 and a 52 week high of $239.95. The company has a market capitalization of $22.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.74 and a beta of 0.90.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The information services provider reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.00. VeriSign had a negative return on equity of 43.01% and a net margin of 50.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of VeriSign from $246.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com upgraded VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Baird R W upgraded VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded VeriSign from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $200.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th.

VeriSign 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.