NEW YORK, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Master Web address directory holder VeriSign could present an attractive buying opportunity for investors, despite an antitrust lawsuit, Barron's reported on Sunday, citing analysts.
VeriSign, which is the exclusive registry of dot-com and dot-net Internet domain names, gets $6.86 for every newly registered dot-com address, based on an agreement with the nonprofit organization charged with overseeing the global domain process, Barron's said in its Sept. 14 edition.
Shares have risen 3 percent in the last six months, compared with more than 50 percent for the Nasdaq stock market, because of an appeals court decision to revive antitrust litigation filed by a group opposed to VeriSign's monopoly over the Web registry, Barron's said.
Still, analysts say it is a good buy, Barron's said. It cited Thrivent Asset Management analyst David Rudow as saying the stock could rise to $25 in a year from the current $21.
Analysts also expect the company to post 30 percent earnings growth in 2009 and 16 percent in 2010. It trades at 14.7 times 2010 earnings, which Barron's called modest.
Investors also likely will look beyond the lawsuit and focus on fundamentals, such as domain registrations and economic recovery, Stifel Nicolaus analyst Todd Weller said, according to Barron's.
VeriSign could lose its Web registry agreement when it comes up for renewal in 2012, Barron's said, but added that much of the possible bad news is already priced into the stock.
(Reporting by Robert MacMillan, editing by Maureen Bavdek) Keywords: VERISIGN/ (robert.macmillan@thomsonreuters.com; +1 646 223 6012; Reuters Messaging: robert.macmillan.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
VeriSign, which is the exclusive registry of dot-com and dot-net Internet domain names, gets $6.86 for every newly registered dot-com address, based on an agreement with the nonprofit organization charged with overseeing the global domain process, Barron's said in its Sept. 14 edition.
Shares have risen 3 percent in the last six months, compared with more than 50 percent for the Nasdaq stock market, because of an appeals court decision to revive antitrust litigation filed by a group opposed to VeriSign's monopoly over the Web registry, Barron's said.
Still, analysts say it is a good buy, Barron's said. It cited Thrivent Asset Management analyst David Rudow as saying the stock could rise to $25 in a year from the current $21.
Analysts also expect the company to post 30 percent earnings growth in 2009 and 16 percent in 2010. It trades at 14.7 times 2010 earnings, which Barron's called modest.
Investors also likely will look beyond the lawsuit and focus on fundamentals, such as domain registrations and economic recovery, Stifel Nicolaus analyst Todd Weller said, according to Barron's.
VeriSign could lose its Web registry agreement when it comes up for renewal in 2012, Barron's said, but added that much of the possible bad news is already priced into the stock.
(Reporting by Robert MacMillan, editing by Maureen Bavdek) Keywords: VERISIGN/ (robert.macmillan@thomsonreuters.com; +1 646 223 6012; Reuters Messaging: robert.macmillan.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
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