AI interpretation based on checked source excerpts. Issuer assertions and evidence limitations remain explicit.
Policy quality-scores-3: six equally weighted categories. The overall score requires full coverage. Missing inputs are not zero. Qualitative grades are sourced interpretations, not probabilities. 6/6 · 29/10/2026
Moat69
Equal-weight average of four evidence-backed rubric grades (0–4), scaled to 100.
structural advantage · 3/4 · Exclusive .com registry rights and the requirement that registrars register those domains with VeriSign establish a strong current contractual barrier. This protects a specific registry franchise. The supplied evidence does not demonstrate separate network effects or comparative cost leadership, and exclusivity does not eliminate competition from other namespaces.
durability · 3/4 · Presumptive renewal rights strengthen continuity beyond the current .com and .net terms. Refusal or termination requires disclosed contractual conditions, and standard .com renewals need no further DOC approval. Potential changes to renewal terms and an unresolved pricing challenge prevent an exceptional durability assessment.
customer dependency · 3/4 · Registrars depend on VeriSign to register domains within its exclusive .com franchise. A 182.5 million combined .com/.net base and a 75.2% final second-quarter renewal rate demonstrate substantial recurring demand. These results support dependency within the namespace but do not quantify migration costs or establish that registrants cannot adopt alternatives.
erosion resilience · 2/4 · The registration base grew 6.1% year over year, demonstrating current resilience. However, the latest measured renewal rate declined slightly, and management attributes some growth to marketing engagement. Registrar distribution choices, substitute online identities and the unresolved antitrust challenge leave longer-term resistance to erosion mixed.
Pricing power69
Equal-weight average of four evidence-backed rubric grades (0–4), scaled to 100.
realized pricing · 3/4 · The annual .com wholesale fee increased from $9.59 to $10.26 effective September 1, 2024, and subsequent customer receipts increased partly because of .com price increases. This demonstrates realization, although volume also contributed and discounts obscure net unit pricing. The announced November 2026 increase is excluded from realized outcomes.
retention · 3/4 · Reported renewals directly demonstrate repeat demand: first-quarter 2026 renewals were 76.3% versus 75.5%, followed by second-quarter renewals of 75.2% versus 75.5%. Retention remains substantial following the implemented price increase, but the latest decline prevents describing a uniformly improving trend. Combined registry figures do not isolate .com customer cohorts.
margin resilience · 3/4 · Annual revenue and operating income increased over 2023–2025 with broadly stable operating profitability. Third-quarter 2026 operating income also rose, despite a $7.5 million operating loss on assets held for sale, though it grew slower than revenue. This supports resilience without isolating pricing effects or using margins alone to establish the moat.
contractual freedom · 2/4 · The .com agreement permits increases of up to 7% in the final four years of each six-year period, providing useful but bounded discretion. The current period began October 26, 2024. DOC approval requirements and restrictions on bundling, distribution and new registry services materially constrain freedom over prices and terms.
Predictability99
5 consecutive published annual periods. Equal weights: nondeclining revenue frequency; revenue-growth volatility (5–40pp); positive FCF frequency; FCF-margin volatility (3–20pp). Stability indicator, not a growth forecast.
- Nondeclining revenue years (%)
- 100.00
- Revenue growth volatility (pp)
- 1.21
- Positive FCF years (%)
- 100.00
- FCF margin volatility (pp)
- 3.57
- observedAnnualPeriods
- 5.00
Financial strength66
Equal-weight grades: debt/FCF (1–8x), net debt/earnings before interest and tax (0–5x), interest service (1–12x), current ratio (0.75–2x). Earnings use reported operating income, an original issuer-reported unadjusted EBIT reconciled to net income, income tax and signed net interest, or reported pretax profit plus reported gross interest expense. Reported EBIT is distinct from GAAP operating income and gross interest. Interest service uses earnings/interest expense; if unavailable, it uses reported operating cash flow/cash interest paid, without relabeling cash paid as accrued expense. Nonpositive cash flow/earnings score 0 for their service component; reported zero interest with a positive numerator scores 100. Net cash scores 100 for net leverage. Missing disclosures remain unavailable. General nonfinancial-company rubric, not a credit rating; exceptional and nonoperating gains are not normalized out. IFRS finance-cost and cash-flow classifications retain their reported scope.
- debtFcfGrade
- 90.37
- netDebtEbitGrade
- 73.59
- interestCoverageGrade
- 100.00
- currentRatioGrade
- 0.00
- Debt / FCF (x)
- 1.67
- Net debt / operating income (x)
- 1.32
- Interest coverage (x)
- 14.56
- Current ratio (x)
- 0.49
Capital allocation97
Three-year equal-weight indicators: pretax operating return on average total assets (0–15%; alternative because at least one reported average invested-capital denominator is nonpositive; this is not ROIC), share-count growth (0–5%, lower better), share-based cost/revenue (2–20%, lower better), consolidated FCF/net income (0–1x). Return uses reported operating income, an original issuer-reported unadjusted EBIT reconciled to net income, income tax and signed net interest, or EBIT calculated from reported pretax profit plus reported gross interest expense; the issuer-reported EBIT is distinct from GAAP operating income and gross interest; exceptional/nonoperating gains are not normalized out. Share-based cost uses the reported cash-flow add-back or, if absent, separately reported recognized compensation expense; the latter never becomes an FCF adjustment. Nonpositive net income scores 0 for cash conversion; absent income/FCF stays unavailable. ROIC remains undefined for nonpositive invested capital; the explicit asset-return alternative does not change the ROIC chart. Missing financial inputs alone never trigger an alternative. Does not establish acquisition quality or buyback timing.
- 3-year average dilution (%)
- -4.66
- 3-year average SBC / revenue (%)
- 4.04
- cashConversionGrade
- 100.00
- operatingAssetReturn
- 68.86
Management63
Equal-weight average of four evidence-backed rubric grades (0–4), scaled to 100.
capital discipline · 2/4 · Nine-month 2026 operating cash flow was $772.3 million, down from $801.5 million. Repurchases and dividends totaled $840.8 million, exceeding operating cash flow before $33.6 million of capital expenditure. Shares declined and debt was refinanced, but distributions exceeded internally generated cash and buyback value creation is unestablished.
incentive alignment · 2/4 · Executive stock ownership requirements extending beyond employment and prohibitions on hedging and pledging provide concrete alignment mechanisms. However, actual executive ownership amounts and sufficiently contextualized realized award payouts are unavailable. These policies support partial alignment without demonstrating the effectiveness of the full compensation package.
execution · 3/4 · Registry renewal, registration-base growth and rising quarterly revenue and operating income support strong execution. Operating-income CAGR nevertheless missed its compensation target, and nine-month operating cash flow declined. Management’s 29-year availability statement is supportive issuer testimony; the new-service rollout and beta do not yet demonstrate commercial success.
governance · 3/4 · Six of seven directors were determined independent, key committees are entirely independent, each share has one vote, and holders of at least 10% can call a special meeting. These are substantial disclosed safeguards. Combined executive chairman and CEO roles limit separation of oversight; structures alone do not establish exceptional governance outcomes.
Evidence
In November 2024, we renewed the .com Registry Agreement with ICANN, pursuant to which we will remain the sole registry operator for the .com registry through November 30, 2030.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, filed October 22, 2026; MD&A, exclusive .com registry term · Filed 22/10/2026
Our .com and .net Registry Agreements contain “presumptive” rights of renewal upon the expiration of their current terms on November 30, 2030 and June 30, 2029, respectively.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, risk factors; presumptive renewal rights and current .com/.net expiration dates · Filed 22/10/2026
ICANN could refuse to renew upon expiration or terminate our .com Registry Agreement or our .net Registry Agreement if, upon proper notice, (1) we fail to cure a fundamental and material breach of certain specified obligations, and (2) we fail to timely comply with a final decision of an arbitrator or court.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, risk factors; conditions for refusal to renew or termination · Filed 22/10/2026
Individual customers, called registrants, contract directly with registrars or their resellers, and the registrars, who are our direct customers, in turn register the domain names with Verisign.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, MD&A; registrant and registrar relationship · Filed 22/10/2026
We increased the annual registry-level wholesale fee for each new and renewal .com domain name registration from $9.59 to $10.26 effective September 1, 2024.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, MD&A; implemented September 2024 wholesale fee increase · Filed 22/10/2026
Cash received from customers increased primarily due to the .com price increases and higher .com domain name registrations and renewals.
2026 second-quarter Form 10-Q, filed July 23, 2026; operating cash flow discussion, customer receipts attribution · Filed 23/07/2026
•As of September 30, 2026, we had 182.5 million .com and .net registrations in the domain name base, which represents a 6.1% increase from September 30, 2025, and a net increase of 3.4 million domain name registrations from June 30, 2026.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, business highlights; September 2026 .com/.net registration base · Filed 22/10/2026
Under the .com Registry Agreement, we are permitted to increase the price of a .com domain name registration by up to 7% in each of the final four years of each six-year period.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, MD&A; permitted .com price increases · Filed 22/10/2026
The current such six-year period began on October 26, 2024.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, MD&A; start of current six-year pricing period · Filed 22/10/2026
We also offer promotional incentive-based discount programs to registrars based upon market conditions and the business environment in which the registrars operate.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, MD&A; promotional registrar discounts · Filed 22/10/2026
•The final .com and .net renewal rate for the second quarter of 2026 was 75.2% compared to 75.5% for the second quarter of 2025.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, business highlights; final second-quarter 2026 renewal rate and prior-year comparison · Filed 22/10/2026
Renewal rates are not fully measurable until 45 days after the end of the quarter.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, business highlights; renewal measurement lag · Filed 22/10/2026
The complaint asserts claims under federal and California antitrust and unfair competition laws relating to the .com Registry Agreement and .com domain name pricing, and seeks both injunctive relief and damages.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, legal proceedings; antitrust complaint claims and requested remedies · Filed 22/10/2026
Based on the information currently available, the Company is unable to reasonably estimate a range of possible losses, if any, that may result from this proceeding.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, legal proceedings; inability to estimate possible losses · Filed 22/10/2026
Additionally, each of the .com and .net Registry Agreements provide that if certain terms of these agreements are not similar to such terms generally in effect in the registry agreements of the five largest gTLDs, then a renewal of these agreements would be upon terms reasonably necessary to render such terms to be similar to the registry agreements for those other gTLDs.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, risk factors; potential renewal-term adjustment · Filed 22/10/2026
Standard renewals of the .com Registry Agreement do not require further DOC approval, although the prior written approval of the DOC is required for the removal of, or any changes to the pricing section (other than as approved in Amendment 35 to the Cooperative Agreement), and for changes to certain other specified terms whether such removal or changes are made at a renewal or otherwise.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, risk factors; standard renewals and DOC approval requirements · Filed 22/10/2026
Under our agreements with ICANN, we are subject to certain restrictions in the operation of .com, .net and .name on pricing, bundling, marketing, methods of distribution, introduction of new registry services, and use of registrars, that do not apply to ccTLDs and other gTLDs and therefore may create a competitive disadvantage.
2025 Form 10-K, filed February 5, 2026; competition, contractual operating restrictions · Filed 05/02/2026
Similarly, if internet users’ preferences or practices shift away from recognizing and relying on web addresses or if internet users were to significantly decrease the use of web browsers in favor of applications to locate and access content, demand for domain names in the gTLDs we operate could be negatively impacted.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, risk factors; potential substitution by applications and changing navigation practices · Filed 22/10/2026
Our registrars and resellers sell domain name registrations of other competing registries, including new gTLDs, and some also sell and support their own services for websites such as email, website hosting, and other services.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, risk factors; registrars also distribute competing registry offerings · Filed 22/10/2026
•The final .com and .net renewal rate for the first quarter of 2026 was 76.3% compared to 75.5% for the first quarter of 2025.
2026 second-quarter Form 10-Q, business highlights; final first-quarter 2026 renewal rate · Filed 23/07/2026
Growth in the domain name base has been positively impacted by continued registrar focus on customer acquisition and engagement with our marketing programs, as well as the evolution of AI tools used in content and website creation.
2026 second-quarter Form 10-Q, MD&A; management attribution of registration growth to marketing and AI website tools · Filed 23/07/2026
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (In millions, except per share data) Year Ended December 31, 2025 2024 2023 Revenues $ 1,656.6 $ 1,557.4 $ 1,493.1 Costs and expenses: Cost of revenues 196.3 191.4 197.3 Research and development 103.6 96.7 91.0 Selling, general and administrative 235.7 211.1 204.2 Total costs and expenses 535.6 499.2 492.5 Operating income 1,121.0 1,058.2 1,000.6 Interest expense (77.0) (75.3) (75.3) Non-operating income, net 24.5 39.0 51.2 Income before income taxes 1,068.5 1,021.9 976.5 Income tax expense (242.8) (236.2) (158.9) Net income 825.7 785.7 817.6 Other comprehensive (loss) income (0.2) 0.1 0.1 Comprehensive income $ 825.5 $ 785.8 $ 817.7 Earnings per share: Basic $ 8.83 $ 8.01 $ 7.91 Diluted $ 8.81 $ 8.00 $ 7.90 Shares used to compute earnings per share Basic 93.5 98.1 103.4 Diluted 93.8 98.2 103.5 See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
2025 Form 10-K, consolidated statements of comprehensive income; 2023–2025 results, units and share counts · Filed 05/02/2026
VeriSign, Inc. and its subsidiaries (“Verisign”) reported revenue of $443 million for the third quarter of 2026, up 5.7 percent from the same quarter in 2025.
Third-quarter 2026 earnings release, filed October 22, 2026; quarterly revenue and growth · Filed 22/10/2026
Operating income was $296 million for the third quarter of 2026, compared to $284 million for the same quarter of 2025.
Third-quarter 2026 earnings release; quarterly operating income comparison · Filed 22/10/2026
During the third quarter of 2026 the Company recognized a pre-tax operating loss of $7.5 million related to certain assets held for sale, which decreased diluted EPS by $0.06.
Third-quarter 2026 earnings release; operating loss on assets held for sale · Filed 22/10/2026
•We generated cash flows from operating activities of $772.3 million during the nine months ended September 30, 2026, compared to $801.5 million for the same period in 2025.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, business highlights; nine-month operating cash flow comparison · Filed 22/10/2026
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(In millions)
(Unaudited)
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2026
2025
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income
$
643.6
$
619.5
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Third-quarter 2026 earnings release, cash flow statement; units, unaudited status and nine-month period headings · Filed 22/10/2026
Proceeds from maturities and sales of marketable securities
354.7
412.5
Purchases of marketable securities
(346.3)
(393.6)
Purchases of property and equipment
(33.6)
(18.3)
Other investing activities
(7.7)
—
Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities
(32.9)
0.6
Cash flows from financing activities:
Repurchases of common stock
(620.0)
(627.2)
Repayment of borrowings
(550.0)
(500.0)
Proceeds from senior note issuance, net of issuance costs
545.0
493.3
Payment of dividends
(220.8)
(144.1)
Proceeds from employee stock purchase plan
12.7
12.3
Payment of excise tax on repurchase of common stock
(7.9)
(11.6)
Net cash used in financing activities
(841.0)
(777.3)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash
0.5
0.1
Net (decrease) increase in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash
(101.1)
24.9
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash at beginning of period
309.5
212.1
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash at end of period
$
208.4
$
237.0
Supplemental cash flow disclosures:
Cash paid for interest
$
49.9
$
55.4
Cash paid for income taxes, net of refunds received
$
195.5
$
169.3
Third-quarter 2026 earnings release, cash flow statement; capital expenditure, distributions, debt issuance and repayments · Filed 22/10/2026
In addition, require NEOs to meet stock ownership guidelines and maintain compliance with stock ownership guidelines until six months after termination of employment.
2026 proxy, filed April 10, 2026; executive stock ownership requirements · Filed 10/04/2026
Our Insider Trading Policy also prohibits our directors, employees (including our executives), and consultants from (i) trading in any interest or position relating to the future price of our securities, such as a put, call or short sale, other than a cashless exercise of an option through a broker, (ii) engaging in hedging or monetization transactions using our securities, including through the use of financial instruments such as prepaid variable forwards, equity swaps, collars, and exchange funds, or (iii) holding our securities in a margin account or otherwise pledging our securities as collateral.
2026 proxy, stock ownership policies; prohibitions on hedging and pledging · Filed 10/04/2026
The CAGR of operating income for the performance period was 5.9% compared to the target of 8.8%.
2026 proxy, executive compensation; operating-income CAGR performance versus target · Filed 10/04/2026
Consistent with these considerations, after review of all relevant transactions and relationships between each director, or any of his or her family members, and Verisign, our executive officers, or our independent registered public accounting firm, our Board affirmatively determined on February 3, 2026 that six out of the seven members of our Board are independent directors, as defined under pertinent Nasdaq Listing Standards.
2026 proxy, director independence; February 3, 2026 board determination · Filed 10/04/2026
Board Committees
•We have an Audit Committee, Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee and Compensation Committee, each of which is composed entirely of independent directors.
2026 proxy, governance highlights; independent key committees · Filed 10/04/2026
•Stockholders owning together at least 10% of outstanding common stock may call a special meeting of stockholders.
2026 proxy, stockholder rights; special-meeting threshold · Filed 10/04/2026
One Share, One Vote
•Each share of our common stock is entitled to one vote.
2026 proxy, stockholder rights; one share, one vote · Filed 10/04/2026
James Bidzos. Mr. Bidzos is also an officer of the Company, serving as its Executive Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.
2026 proxy, board leadership; combined executive chairman and CEO roles · Filed 10/04/2026
On April 23, 2026, we announced that we will increase the annual registry-level wholesale fee for each new and renewal .com domain name registration from $10.26 to $10.97 effective November 1, 2026.
2026 third-quarter Form 10-Q, MD&A; announced November 2026 wholesale fee increase · Filed 22/10/2026
Competition
We face competition in the domain name registry space from other gTLD and ccTLD registries that are competing for the business of entities and individuals that are seeking to obtain a domain name registration.
2025 Form 10-K, competition; competing registry categories · Filed 05/02/2026
The rollout of the .web top-level domain is on track, and we opened the limited beta phase of our high-assurance validation service, Verisign Informed™, which can strengthen and enhance existing tools of trust that are deployed world-wide for authenticating data and users,” said Jim Bidzos, Executive Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.
Third-quarter 2026 earnings release; CEO statements on .web rollout and validation-service limited beta · Filed 22/10/2026
“Last week we extended our record of delivering 100% availability for the .com and .net domain name resolution system to 29 years, an unparalleled record.
Second-quarter 2026 earnings release, filed July 23, 2026; management statement on resolution-system availability · Filed 23/07/2026
