VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) Shares Bought by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) by 13.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 100,917 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,149 shares during the quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned about 0.11% of VeriSign worth $20,886,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VRSN. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in VeriSign during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of VeriSign in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of VeriSign by 127.2% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new position in VeriSign in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management raised its holdings in VeriSign by 69.8% during 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 during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at VeriSign

In other news, SVP John Calys sold 447 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.75, for a total transaction of $103,592.25. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,735 shares in the company, valued at $5,500,586.25. This represents a 1.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

VeriSign Trading Up 0.3 %

VeriSign stock opened at $246.67 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.22 billion, a PE ratio of 30.83 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $240.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $211.73. VeriSign, Inc. has a 52 week low of $167.05 and a 52 week high of $258.67.

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 50.47% and a negative return on equity of 43.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on VRSN shares. StockNews.com upgraded VeriSign from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 12th. Citigroup lifted their target price 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of VeriSign from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st.

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.