Verisign Reports Third Quarter 2026 Results
- VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSN), a global provider of critical internet infrastructure and domain name registry services, today reported financial results for the third quarter of 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. Operating income was $296 million for the third quarter of 2026, compared to $284 million for the same quarter of 2025. Verisign reported net income of $213 million and diluted earnings per share (diluted “EPS”) of $2.35 for the third quarter of 2026, compared to net income of $213 million and diluted EPS of $2.27 for the same quarter of 2025. 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.
“We delivered a strong quarter operationally, having grown the domain name base by 6.1% year-over-year. 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.
• Verisign ended the third quarter of 2026 with cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities of $476 million, a decrease of $104 million from year-end 2025.
• Cash flow from operations was $268 million for the third quarter of 2026, compared to $308 million for the same quarter of 2025.
• Deferred revenues as of September 30, 2026, totaled $1.46 billion, an increase of $79 million from year-end 2025.
• During the third quarter of 2026, Verisign repurchased 0.7 million shares of its common stock for an aggregate cost of $189 million. As of September 30, 2026, there was $1.36 billion remaining for future share repurchases under the share repurchase program, which has no expiration.
• On October 19, 2026, Verisign’s Board of Directors approved a cash dividend of $0.81 per share of Verisign’s outstanding common stock to stockholders of record as of the close of business on November 17, 2026, payable on November 24, 2026.
• Verisign ended the third quarter of 2026 with 182.5 million .com and .net domain name registrations in the domain name base, a 6.1 percent increase from the end of the third quarter of 2025, and a net increase of 3.36 million domain names during the third quarter of 2026.
• During the third quarter of 2026, Verisign processed 13.1 million new domain name registrations for .com and .net, compared with 10.6 million for the third quarter of 2025.
• The final .com and .net renewal rate for the second quarter of 2026 was 75.2 percent compared to 75.5 percent for the same quarter of 2025. Renewal rates are not fully measurable until 45 days after the end of the quarter.
Verisign will host a live conference call today at 4:30 p.m. (EDT) to review the third quarter 2026 results. The call will be accessible by direct dial at (888) 676-VRSN (U.S.) or (646) 769-9200 (international), conference ID: Verisign. A listen-only live web cast of the conference call and accompanying slide presentation will also be available at https://investor.verisign.com .
An audio archive of the call will be available at https://investor.verisign.com/events.cfm . This news release and the financial information discussed on today’s conference call are available at https://investor.verisign.com .
Verisign (NASDAQ: VRSN), a global provider of critical internet infrastructure and domain name registry services, enables internet navigation for many of the world’s most recognized domain names. Verisign helps enable the security, stability, and resiliency of the Domain Name System and the internet by providing root zone maintainer services, operating two of the 13 global internet root servers, and providing registration services and authoritative resolution for the .com and .net top-level domains, which support the majority of global e-commerce. To learn more please visit verisign.com .
Statements in this announcement other than historical data and information constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as amended. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those stated or implied by such forward-looking statements. The potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, attempted security breaches, cyber-attacks, and DDoS attacks against our systems and services; the introduction of undetected or unknown defects in our systems or services; vulnerabilities in the global routing system; system interruptions or system failures; advances in quantum computing; damage or interruptions to our data centers, data center systems or resolution systems; increases in the cost of compute and network hardware; risks arising from our operation of root servers and our performance of the Root Zone Maintainer functions; unsuccessful strategic initiatives or launches of new products or services; any loss or modification of our right to operate the .com and .net gTLDs; changes or challenges to the pricing provisions of the .com Registry Agreement; new or existing governmental laws and regulations in the U.S. or other applicable non-U.S. jurisdictions; new laws, regulations, directives or ICANN policies that require us to obtain and maintain personal information of registrants; economic, legal, regulatory, and political risks associated with our international operations; unfavorable changes in, or interpretations of, tax rules and regulations; risks from the implementation of ICANN’s consensus and temporary policies, technical standards and other processes; the weakening of, or changes to, the multi-stakeholder model of internet governance; the outcome of claims, lawsuits, audits or investigations; challenging economic conditions; our ability to compete in the highly competitive business environment in which we operate; changes in internet practices and behavior and the adoption of substitute technologies, or the negative impact of wholesale price increases; our ability to expand our services into developing and emerging economies; our ability to maintain strong relationships with registrars and their resellers; our ability to attract, retain and motivate highly skilled employees; the continuity of our quarterly dividend; our ability to protect and enforce our intellectual property rights; challenges from the use of AI technology by third-parties, autonomous agents, or us; and the impact on our stock price from the dissemination of false or misleading information by unrelated third parties. More information about potential factors that could affect our business and financial results is included in our filings with the SEC, including in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2025, our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2026 and Current Reports on Form 8-K. Verisign undertakes no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this announcement.
© 2026 VeriSign, Inc. All rights reserved. VERISIGN, the VERISIGN logo, and other trademarks, service marks, and designs are registered or unregistered trademarks of VeriSign, Inc. and its subsidiaries in the United States and in foreign countries. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.
September 30, December 31, 2026 2025 ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ASSETS Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 206.8 $ 307.9 Marketable securities 269.3 272.6 Other current assets 97.4 72.0 Total current assets 573.5 652.5 Property and equipment, net 221.2 213.7 Goodwill 52.5 52.5 Intangible assets 171.4 — Deferred tax assets 218.1 233.2 Deposits to acquire intangible assets — 145.2 Other long-term assets 43.4 28.8 Total long-term assets 706.6 673.4 Total assets $ 1,280.1 $ 1,325.9 LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ DEFICIT Current liabilities: Accounts payable and accrued $ 286.8 $ 298.0 liabilities Deferred revenues 1,094.4 1,035.1 Total current liabilities 1,381.2 1,333.1 Long-term deferred revenues 368.9 349.4 Long-term senior notes 1,785.9 1,788.2 Other long-term liabilities 28.8 9.4 Total long-term liabilities 2,183.6 2,147.0 Total liabilities 3,564.8 3,480.1 Commitments and contingencies Stockholders’ deficit: Preferred stock—par value $.001 per share; Authorized shares: 5.0; Issued — — and outstanding shares: none Common stock and additional paid-in capital—par value $.001 per share; Authorized shares: 1,000; Issued shares: 355.9 at September 30, 2026 and 355.6 at 8,849.6 9,623.5 December 31, 2025; Outstanding shares: 89.8 at September 30, 2026 and 91.9 at December 31, 2025 Accumulated deficit -11,131.4 -11,775.0 Accumulated other comprehensive loss -2.9 -2.7 Total stockholders’ deficit -2,284.7 -2,154.2 Total liabilities and stockholders’ $ 1,280.1 $ 1,325.9 deficit
Nine Months Ended Cash flows from September 30, operating activities: 2026 2025 ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Net income $ 643.6 $ 619.5 Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: Depreciation of property 19.8 24.5 and equipment Stock-based compensation 58.8 51.8 expense Amortization of discount on investments -5.3 -8.2 in debt securities Other, net 10.2 2.4 Changes in operating assets and liabilities: Other assets -40.4 -3.2 Other liabilities -8.5 20.6 Deferred revenues 78.9 80.1 Net deferred income 15.2 14.0 taxes Net cash provided by operating 772.3 801.5 activities Cash flows from investing activities: Proceeds from maturities and sales of 354.7 412.5 marketable securities Purchases of marketable -346.3 -393.6 securities Purchases of property -33.6 -18.3 and equipment Other investing -7.7 — activities Net cash (used in) provided by investing -32.9 0.6 activities Cash flows from financing activities: Repurchases of common -620.0 -627.2 stock Repayment of borrowings -550.0 -500.0 Proceeds from senior note issuance, net 545.0 493.3 of issuance costs Payment of dividends -220.8 -144.1 Proceeds from employee stock purchase 12.7 12.3 plan Payment of excise tax on repurchase of -7.9 -11.6 common stock Net cash used in -841.0 -777.3 financing activities Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, 0.5 0.1 cash equivalents, and restricted cash Net (decrease) increase in cash, cash -101.1 24.9 equivalents, and restricted cash Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted 309.5 212.1 cash at beginning of period Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted $ 208.4 $ 237.0 cash at end of period Supplemental cash flow disclosures: Cash paid for interest $ 49.9 $ 55.4 Cash paid for income taxes, net of $ 195.5 $ 169.3 refunds received
Full text with the tables
Verisign Reports Third Quarter 2026 Results
RESTON, VA - Oct. 22, 2026
- VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSN), a global provider of critical internet
infrastructure and domain name registry services, today reported financial
results for the third quarter of 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. Operating income was $296 million for the third quarter of 2026, compared
to $284 million for the same quarter of 2025. Verisign reported net income of
$213 million and diluted earnings per share (diluted “EPS”) of $2.35 for the
third quarter of 2026, compared to net income of $213 million and diluted EPS of
$2.27 for the same quarter of 2025. 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.
“We delivered a strong quarter operationally, having grown the domain name base
by 6.1% year-over-year. 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.
Financial Highlights
• Verisign ended the third quarter of 2026 with cash, cash equivalents and
marketable securities of $476 million, a decrease of $104 million from year-end
2025.
• Cash flow from operations was $268 million for the third quarter of 2026,
compared to $308 million for the same quarter of 2025.
• Deferred revenues as of September 30, 2026, totaled $1.46 billion, an increase
of $79 million from year-end 2025.
• During the third quarter of 2026, Verisign repurchased 0.7 million shares of
its common stock for an aggregate cost of $189 million. As of September 30,
2026, there was $1.36 billion remaining for future share repurchases under the
share repurchase program, which has no expiration.
• On October 19, 2026, Verisign’s Board of Directors approved a cash dividend of
$0.81 per share of Verisign’s outstanding common stock to stockholders of record
as of the close of business on November 17, 2026, payable on November 24, 2026.
Business Highlights
• Verisign ended the third quarter of 2026 with 182.5 million .com and .net
domain name registrations in the domain name base, a 6.1 percent increase from
the end of the third quarter of 2025, and a net increase of 3.36 million domain
names during the third quarter of 2026.
• During the third quarter of 2026, Verisign processed 13.1 million new domain
name registrations for .com and .net, compared with 10.6 million for the third
quarter of 2025.
• The final .com and .net renewal rate for the second quarter of 2026 was 75.2
percent compared to 75.5 percent for the same quarter of 2025. Renewal rates are
not fully measurable until 45 days after the end of the quarter.
Today’s Conference Call
Verisign will host a live conference call today at 4:30 p.m. (EDT) to review the
third quarter 2026 results. The call will be accessible by direct dial at (888)
676-VRSN (U.S.) or (646) 769-9200 (international), conference ID: Verisign. A
listen-only live web cast of the conference call and accompanying slide
presentation will also be available at https://investor.verisign.com .
An audio archive of the call will be available at
https://investor.verisign.com/events.cfm . This news release and the financial
information discussed on today’s conference call are available at
https://investor.verisign.com .
About Verisign
Verisign (NASDAQ: VRSN), a global provider of critical internet infrastructure
and domain name registry services, enables internet navigation for many of the
world’s most recognized domain names. Verisign helps enable the security,
stability, and resiliency of the Domain Name System and the internet by
providing root zone maintainer services, operating two of the 13 global internet
root servers, and providing registration services and authoritative resolution
for the .com and .net top-level domains, which support the majority of global
e-commerce. To learn more please visit verisign.com .
Statements in this announcement other than historical data and information
constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933 as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934 as amended. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could
cause our actual results to differ materially from those stated or implied by
such forward-looking statements. The potential risks and uncertainties include,
among others, attempted security breaches, cyber-attacks, and DDoS attacks
against our systems and services; the introduction of undetected or unknown
defects in our systems or services; vulnerabilities in the global routing
system; system interruptions or system failures; advances in quantum computing;
damage or interruptions to our data centers, data center systems or resolution
systems; increases in the cost of compute and network hardware; risks arising
from our operation of root servers and our performance of the Root Zone
Maintainer functions; unsuccessful strategic initiatives or launches of new
products or services; any loss or modification of our right to operate the .com
and .net gTLDs; changes or challenges to the pricing provisions of the .com
Registry Agreement; new or existing governmental laws and regulations in the
U.S. or other applicable non-U.S. jurisdictions; new laws, regulations,
directives or ICANN policies that require us to obtain and maintain personal
information of registrants; economic, legal, regulatory, and political risks
associated with our international operations; unfavorable changes in, or
interpretations of, tax rules and regulations; risks from the implementation of
ICANN’s consensus and temporary policies, technical standards and other
processes; the weakening of, or changes to, the multi-stakeholder model of
internet governance; the outcome of claims, lawsuits, audits or investigations;
challenging economic conditions; our ability to compete in the highly
competitive business environment in which we operate; changes in internet
practices and behavior and the adoption of substitute technologies, or the
negative impact of wholesale price increases; our ability to expand our services
into developing and emerging economies; our ability to maintain strong
relationships with registrars and their resellers; our ability to attract,
retain and motivate highly skilled employees; the continuity of our quarterly
dividend; our ability to protect and enforce our intellectual property rights;
challenges from the use of AI technology by third-parties, autonomous agents, or
us; and the impact on our stock price from the dissemination of false or
misleading information by unrelated third parties. More information about
potential factors that could affect our business and financial results is
included in our filings with the SEC, including in our Annual Report on Form
10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2025, our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the
quarter ended Sept. 30, 2026 and Current Reports on Form 8-K. Verisign
undertakes no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after
the date of this announcement.
Contacts
Investor Relations: David Atchley, datchley@verisign.com , 703-948-3447
Media Relations: David McGuire, davmcguire@verisign.com , 703-948-3800
© 2026 VeriSign, Inc. All rights reserved. VERISIGN, the VERISIGN logo, and
other trademarks, service marks, and designs are registered or unregistered
trademarks of VeriSign, Inc. and its subsidiaries in the United States and in
foreign countries. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.
VERISIGN, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In millions, except par value)
(Unaudited)
September 30, December 31,
2026 2025
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents $ 206.8 $ 307.9
Marketable securities 269.3 272.6
Other current assets 97.4 72.0
Total current assets 573.5 652.5
Property and equipment, net 221.2 213.7
Goodwill 52.5 52.5
Intangible assets 171.4 —
Deferred tax assets 218.1 233.2
Deposits to acquire intangible assets — 145.2
Other long-term assets 43.4 28.8
Total long-term assets 706.6 673.4
Total assets $ 1,280.1 $ 1,325.9
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ DEFICIT
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable and accrued $ 286.8 $ 298.0
liabilities
Deferred revenues 1,094.4 1,035.1
Total current liabilities 1,381.2 1,333.1
Long-term deferred revenues 368.9 349.4
Long-term senior notes 1,785.9 1,788.2
Other long-term liabilities 28.8 9.4
Total long-term liabilities 2,183.6 2,147.0
Total liabilities 3,564.8 3,480.1
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ deficit:
Preferred stock—par value $.001 per
share; Authorized shares: 5.0; Issued — —
and outstanding shares: none
Common stock and additional paid-in
capital—par value $.001 per share;
Authorized shares:
1,000; Issued shares:
355.9 at September 30, 2026 and 355.6
at 8,849.6 9,623.5
December 31, 2025; Outstanding
shares:
89.8 at September 30, 2026 and 91.9
at
December 31, 2025
Accumulated deficit -11,131.4 -11,775.0
Accumulated other comprehensive loss -2.9 -2.7
Total stockholders’ deficit -2,284.7 -2,154.2
Total liabilities and stockholders’ $ 1,280.1 $ 1,325.9
deficit
VERISIGN, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
(In millions, except per share data)
(Unaudited)
Three Nine
Months Months
Ended Ended
September Septemb…
2026 30, 2025 2026 30, 2025
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Revenu… $ 443.0 $ 419.1 $ 1,306.5 $ 1,231.3
Costs
and
expens…
Cost of 49.8 48.8 149.0 147.3
revenu…
Resear…
and 26.5 25.4 81.5 77.1
develo…
Sellin…
general 70.2 60.6 189.6 170.7
and
admini…
Total
costs 146.5 134.8 420.1 395.1
and
expens…
Operat… 296.5 284.3 886.4 836.2
income
Intere… -21.2 -18.9 -59.3 -58.1
expense
Non-op…
income, 4.3 6.3 13.5 19.3
net
Income
before 279.6 271.7 840.6 797.4
income
taxes
Income
tax -67.0 -58.9 -197.0 -177.9
expense
Net 212.6 212.8 643.6 619.5
income
Other
compre… -0.1 0.1 -0.2 -0.2
(loss)
income
Compre… $ 212.5 $ 212.9 $ 643.4 $ 619.3
income
Earnin…
per
share:
Basic $ 2.36 $ 2.28 $ 7.08 $ 6.60
Diluted $ 2.35 $ 2.27 $ 7.06 $ 6.58
Shares
used to
compute
earnin…
per
share
Basic 90.1 93.3 90.8 93.9
Diluted 90.4 93.6 91.1 94.1
VERISIGN, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(In millions)
(Unaudited)
Nine Months Ended
Cash flows from September 30,
operating activities: 2026 2025
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Net income $ 643.6 $ 619.5
Adjustments to reconcile
net income to
net cash provided by
operating
activities:
Depreciation of property 19.8 24.5
and equipment
Stock-based compensation 58.8 51.8
expense
Amortization of discount
on investments -5.3 -8.2
in debt securities
Other, net 10.2 2.4
Changes in operating
assets and
liabilities:
Other assets -40.4 -3.2
Other liabilities -8.5 20.6
Deferred revenues 78.9 80.1
Net deferred income 15.2 14.0
taxes
Net cash provided by
operating 772.3 801.5
activities
Cash flows from
investing activities:
Proceeds from maturities
and sales of 354.7 412.5
marketable securities
Purchases of marketable -346.3 -393.6
securities
Purchases of property -33.6 -18.3
and equipment
Other investing -7.7 —
activities
Net cash (used in)
provided by investing -32.9 0.6
activities
Cash flows from
financing activities:
Repurchases of common -620.0 -627.2
stock
Repayment of borrowings -550.0 -500.0
Proceeds from senior
note issuance, net 545.0 493.3
of issuance costs
Payment of dividends -220.8 -144.1
Proceeds from employee
stock purchase 12.7 12.3
plan
Payment of excise tax on
repurchase of -7.9 -11.6
common stock
Net cash used in -841.0 -777.3
financing activities
Effect of exchange rate
changes on cash, 0.5 0.1
cash equivalents, and
restricted cash
Net (decrease) increase
in cash, cash -101.1 24.9
equivalents, and
restricted cash
Cash, cash equivalents,
and restricted 309.5 212.1
cash at beginning of
period
Cash, cash equivalents,
and restricted $ 208.4 $ 237.0
cash at end of period
Supplemental cash flow
disclosures:
Cash paid for interest $ 49.9 $ 55.4
Cash paid for income
taxes, net of $ 195.5 $ 169.3
refunds received