Verisign
Verisign's revenue rose 6.4% to $1.7 billion in fiscal 2025. Its operating margin was 67.7%, down from 68.0% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $1.1 billion, up 22.2%. It paid out $1.1 billion in dividends and buybacks, 103% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 4.5%.
Operating margin is operating income as a share of revenue. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending. Return on equity is net income as a share of shareholders' equity. Market cap is the last closing share price times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate. P/E is the last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters, or the latest fiscal year where the quarters aren't available; there is none when the company made a loss.
Charts show fiscal years, from the 10-K filings.
Revenue and margins
Net income and earnings per share
From fiscal 2016 to 2025, earnings per share grew 11.1% a year and net income 7.2% a year, as buybacks cut the share count by 27%.
Returns on capital
Cash flow
Payouts and share count
Valuation
Two ways to value Verisign yourself, both starting from its filings: a discounted cash flow model and the price-to-earnings method.
Discounted cash flow (DCF)
A discounted cash flow (DCF) model values a business as the cash it may generate in future, discounted back to today. The starting figures come from Verisign's 10-K (or, for net cash and shares, its latest 10-Q) and the assumptions are yours: start from one of three example scenarios, then change any figure to see what it implies for a share, and how that compares with the last share price.
Value per share on three example scenarios, from Verisign's fiscal 2025 free cash flow of $1.1B, net cash of −$1.2B at December 31, 2025 and 94 million diluted shares, from its filings. The scenarios are fitted to Verisign: the base scenario's growth in years 1 to 5 is its revenue growth over the last 3 years, 5.2% a year; the cautious and optimistic ones are lower and higher, and growth in years 6 to 10 is halfway to the long-run rate. The base scenario's discount rate is 9% for a business of moderate risk (Internet Services & Infrastructure); the cautious and optimistic ones use a point more and a point less. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.
- Last close, October 26, 2026
- $308.72
- Value on these assumptions, against the last close
- —
- Cash flows in years 1 to 10, valued today
- —
- Everything after year 10, valued today
- —
- Plus net cash
- —
- Share of value from after year 10
How the value changes with two assumptions
Price-to-earnings (P/E) method
Another common way to value a company is to multiply its earnings per share by a price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple: the number of years of today's earnings an investor pays for a share. A higher multiple usually means investors expect earnings to grow. Choose a multiple, for example from similar companies, to see the value it gives.
Value per share on three example scenarios, from Verisign's earnings per share of $9.30 (over the last four quarters). Each grows earnings for a year at the cash flow scenarios' rates and applies a multiple to next year's earnings: 33.6×, the average of the Information Technology median and Verisign's own P/E today for the base scenario, 20% less and more for the cautious and optimistic ones. The price is brought back a year at 10%, 9% and 8%. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.
- Last close, October 26, 2026
- $308.72
- Value at this multiple, against the last close
- —
- Verisign's P/E at the last close
- 33.2×
| Company | Last close | Earnings per share | P/E today |
|---|---|---|---|
| DigitalOceanDOCN | $99.53 | $2.16 | 46.1× |
| VerisignVRSN | $308.72 | $9.30 | 33.2× |
Balance sheet
| Fiscal year end | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash and short-term investments | 1,211 | 986 | 932 | 605 | 582 |
| Debt incl. finance leases | 1,786 | 1,788 | 1,790 | 1,792 | 1,788 |
| Net debt (negative means net cash) | 575 | 802 | 858 | 1,187 | 1,206 |
| Net debt to EBITDA | 0.6x | 0.8x | 0.8x | 1.1x | 1.1x |
| Debt to equity | — | — | — | — | — |
| Interest coverage | 10.4x | 12.5x | 13.3x | 14.1x | 14.6x |
| Current ratio | 1.2x | 0.9x | 0.8x | 0.4x | 0.5x |
| Quick ratio | 1.2x | 0.9x | 0.8x | 0.4x | 0.5x |
Insider trades
Over the 12 months between October 27, 2025 and October 26, 2026, 1 insider bought $19,492 of Verisign shares on the open market, and 4 insiders sold $36.0 million, $33.7 million of it under trading plans set up in advance.
| Date | Insider | Trade | Shares | Price | Value | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 20, 2026 | Bidzos D JamesExec. Chairman, Pres, & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 3,300 | $306.30 | $1.0 million | Form 4 |
| Oct 13, 2026 | Bidzos D JamesExec. Chairman, Pres, & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 3,300 | $302.85 | $999,404 | Form 4 |
| Oct 8, 2026 | Thomas C IndelicartoEVP, Gen Counsel & Secretary | Sold plan | 500 | $293.14 | $146,570 | Form 4 |
| Oct 6, 2026 | Bidzos D JamesExec. Chairman, Pres, & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 3,300 | $292.33 | $964,691 | Form 4 |
| Oct 1, 2026 | Thomas C IndelicartoEVP, Gen Counsel & Secretary | Sold plan | 500 | $284.38 | $142,190 | Form 4 |
| Sep 29, 2026 | Bidzos D JamesExec. Chairman, Pres, & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 3,300 | $278.78 | $919,964 | Form 4 |
| Sep 22, 2026 | Bidzos D JamesExec. Chairman, Pres, & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 3,300 | $304.75 | $1.0 million | Form 4 |
| Sep 15, 2026 | Bidzos D JamesExec. Chairman, Pres, & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 3,300 | $296.58 | $978,716 | Form 4 |
| Sep 8, 2026 | Bidzos D JamesExec. Chairman, Pres, & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 3,300 | $284.40 | $938,524 | Form 4 |
| Sep 8, 2026 | Thomas C IndelicartoEVP, Gen Counsel & Secretary | Sold plan | 500 | $289.16 | $144,580 | Form 4 |
| Sep 1, 2026 | Bidzos D JamesExec. Chairman, Pres, & CEO, Director | Sold plan | 3,300 | $291.09 | $960,601 | Form 4 |
| Sep 1, 2026 | Thomas C IndelicartoEVP, Gen Counsel & Secretary | Sold plan | 500 | $290.78 | $145,390 | Form 4 |
Piotroski F-score
The F-score counts how many of nine simple tests of profitability, funding and efficiency a company passed in a year (Piotroski, 2000). The more tests passed, the stronger the year: 8 or 9 is strong, 0 to 2 weak. Companies that report no gross profit are scored on the other eight.
| Test | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net income is positive | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Cash from operations is positive | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Return on assets rose | Pass | Fail | Pass |
| Cash from operations exceeds net income | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Debt fell relative to assets | Fail | Fail | Fail |
| Current ratio rose | Fail | Fail | Pass |
| Share count didn't rise | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Gross margin rose | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Revenue rose relative to assets | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| F-score | 7 of 9 | 6 of 9 | 8 of 9 |
| Accruals ratio | −2.1% | −7.4% | −19.4% |
Compare
Put Verisign side by side with any other company we cover: revenue, growth, margins, cash flow and returns, with ten years of charts.
Similar companies
| Company | Year | Revenue growth | Operating margin | Free cash flow margin | Return on capital | Net debt to EBITDA | F-score | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verisign | FY25 | 6.4% | 67.7% | 64.5% | — | 1.1x | 8 | |
| Wix.com | FY25 | 13.2% | 0.1% | 29.2% | — | 9.9x | 7 | Compare |
| Cloudflare | FY25 | 29.9% | −9.6% | 13.3% | −29.7% | — | 3 | Compare |
| DigitalOcean | FY25 | 15.5% | 17.4% | 20.0% | 15.7% | 4.0x | 7 | Compare |
| IREN | FY26 | 41.1% | −148.1% | −127.0% | −19.8% | — | 3 | Compare |
10 years of figures
| Fiscal year | FY16 | FY17 | FY18 | FY19 | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Income statement | ||||||||||
| Revenue | 1,142 | 1,165 | 1,215 | 1,232 | 1,265 | 1,328 | 1,425 | 1,493 | 1,557 | 1,657 |
| Revenue growth | 7.8% | 2.0% | 4.3% | 1.4% | 2.7% | 4.9% | 7.3% | 4.8% | 4.3% | 6.4% |
| Gross profit | 944 | 972 | 1,023 | 1,051 | 1,085 | 1,136 | 1,224 | 1,296 | 1,366 | 1,460 |
| Research and development | 59 | 52 | 58 | 61 | 75 | 80 | 86 | 91 | 97 | 104 |
| Operating income | 687 | 708 | 767 | 806 | 824 | 867 | 943 | 1,001 | 1,058 | 1,121 |
| Net income | 441 | 457 | 582 | 612 | 815 | 785 | 674 | 818 | 786 | 826 |
| Diluted EPS (US$) | 3.42 | 3.68 | 4.75 | 5.15 | 7.07 | 7.00 | 6.24 | 7.90 | 8.00 | 8.81 |
| Diluted shares (millions) | 129 | 124 | 123 | 119 | 115 | 112 | 108 | 104 | 98 | 94 |
| Cash flow | ||||||||||
| Cash from operations | 693 | 703 | 698 | 754 | 730 | 807 | 831 | 854 | 903 | 1,091 |
| Capital expenditure | 27 | 50 | 37 | 40 | 43 | 53 | 27 | 46 | 28 | 23 |
| Free cash flow | 666 | 653 | 661 | 714 | 687 | 754 | 804 | 808 | 874 | 1,068 |
| Dividends paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 215 |
| Share buybacks | 662 | 621 | 638 | 783 | 778 | 723 | 1,048 | 901 | 1,226 | 882 |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Stock-based compensation | 50 | 53 | 52 | 51 | 48 | 53 | 59 | 60 | 61 | 70 |
| Balance sheet at fiscal year end | ||||||||||
| Cash and short-term investments | 1,808 | 2,424 | 1,279 | 1,228 | 1,176 | 1,211 | 986 | 932 | 605 | 582 |
| Debt incl. finance leases | 1,867 | 2,410 | 1,785 | 1,788 | 1,790 | 1,786 | 1,788 | 1,790 | 1,792 | 1,788 |
| Total assets | 2,335 | 2,941 | 1,914 | 1,854 | 1,767 | 1,984 | 1,733 | 1,749 | 1,406 | 1,326 |
| Total liabilities | 3,535 | 4,202 | 3,300 | 3,344 | 3,157 | 3,244 | 3,296 | 3,330 | 3,364 | 3,480 |
| Shareholders' equity | −1,201 | −1,260 | −1,386 | −1,490 | −1,390 | −1,260 | −1,562 | −1,581 | −1,958 | −2,154 |
| Margins and ratios | ||||||||||
| Gross margin | 82.6% | 83.4% | 84.2% | 85.3% | 85.8% | 85.5% | 85.9% | 86.8% | 87.7% | 88.2% |
| Operating margin | 60.1% | 60.7% | 63.2% | 65.5% | 65.2% | 65.3% | 66.2% | 67.0% | 68.0% | 67.7% |
| Net margin | 38.6% | 39.2% | 47.9% | 49.7% | 64.4% | 59.1% | 47.3% | 54.8% | 50.5% | 49.8% |
| Free cash flow margin | 58.4% | 56.1% | 54.4% | 57.9% | 54.3% | 56.8% | 56.4% | 54.1% | 56.1% | 64.5% |
| Return on capital | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Return on equity | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Return on assets | 18.8% | 17.3% | 24.0% | 32.5% | 45.0% | 41.9% | 36.2% | 47.0% | 49.8% | 60.4% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | 0.1x | −0.0x | 0.6x | 0.7x | 0.7x | 0.6x | 0.8x | 0.8x | 1.1x | 1.1x |