VeriSign (VRSN) Competitors

VeriSign (NASDAQ:VRSN) and Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, community ranking, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, media sentiment and earnings.

Does the media favor VRSN or EQIX?

In the previous week, Equinix had 6 more articles in the media than VeriSign. MarketBeat recorded 27 mentions for Equinix and 21 mentions for VeriSign. VeriSign's average media sentiment score of 1.15 beat Equinix's score of 1.15 indicating that VeriSign is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
VeriSign	15 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Equinix	19 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	7 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts prefer VRSN or EQIX?

VeriSign presently has a consensus price target of $250.00, indicating a potential upside of 1.89%. Equinix has a consensus price target of $990.06, indicating a potential upside of 16.14%. Given Equinix's higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Equinix is more favorable than VeriSign.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
VeriSign	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.33
Equinix	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	15 Buy rating(s)	3 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Does the MarketBeat Community believe in VRSN or EQIX?

Equinix received 719 more outperform votes than VeriSign when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 73.27% of users gave Equinix an outperform vote while only 62.05% of users gave VeriSign an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
VeriSign	Outperform Votes 394 62.05%	Underperform Votes 241 37.95%
Equinix	Outperform Votes 1113 73.27%	Underperform Votes 406 26.73%

Which has higher valuation and earnings, VRSN or EQIX?

Equinix has higher revenue and earnings than VeriSign. VeriSign is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Equinix, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
VeriSign	$1.56B	14.90	$785.70M	$8.00	30.67
Equinix	$8.75B	9.48	$815M	$8.55	99.70

Is VRSN or EQIX more profitable?

VeriSign has a net margin of 50.47% compared to Equinix's net margin of 9.32%. Equinix's return on equity of 6.31% beat VeriSign's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
VeriSign	50.47%	-43.01%	51.54%
Equinix	9.32%	6.31%	2.41%

Which has more risk & volatility, VRSN or EQIX?

VeriSign has a beta of 0.87, indicating that its share price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equinix has a beta of 0.74, indicating that its share price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do institutionals and insiders believe in VRSN or EQIX?

92.9% of VeriSign shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.9% of Equinix shares are held by institutional investors. 0.8% of VeriSign shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Equinix shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Equinix beats VeriSign on 12 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.