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PS vs. VRSN: Pershing Square vs. VeriSign Stock Comparison

How do Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN) both fall under the Software & Services industry group, but PS is classified in Software while VRSN is classified in IT Services.

VeriSign (VRSN) has been public since January 30, 1998, giving it decades of market history across multiple cycles, while Pershing Square (PS) listed only on April 29, 2026 and lacks comparable through-cycle data.

Company profile comparison for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN)
Profile ItemPSVRSN
NamePluralsight IncVeriSign, Inc.
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorInformation TechnologyInformation Technology
GICS Industry GroupSoftware & ServicesSoftware & Services
GICS IndustrySoftwareIT Services
GICS Sub-IndustryApplication SoftwareInternet Services & Infrastructure
Market Capitalization20.58 billion USD27.69 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNasdaqNasdaq
Listing DateApril 29, 2026January 30, 1998
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

PS
VRSN
GSPC
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN)
MetricPSVRSN
Total Return (1Y)--28.37%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)--15.25%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)--5.98%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

PS
VRSN
GSPC
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Pershing Square (PS) has a highly aggressive beta of 6.25, indicating much higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, while VeriSign (VRSN) is defensive at 0.67 and tends to be less market-sensitive — a wide gap in beta profiles.

Risk profile metrics for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN)
MetricPSVRSN
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)100.16%28.25%
Beta (5Y)6.250.67
Max Drawdown (5Y)-43.14%-38.85%
Avg. Volume (3M)428.47K869.64K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Both PS and VRSN need 1-year volatility and 1-year return to plot risk-return positioning.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN)
MetricPSVRSN
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)--0.85
Sortino Ratio (1Y)--1.24

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Neither Pershing Square (PS) nor VeriSign (VRSN) reports a ROE value for this period, so a direct comparison isn’t possible.

PS

Software & Services industry group

--

Max
53.85%
Q3
17.90%
Median
6.59%
Q1
-9.59%
Min
-50.52%
PS
--

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

--

Max
53.85%
Q3
17.90%
Median
6.59%
Q1
-9.59%
Min
-50.52%
VRSN
--
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): Neither stock reports ROE, so the chart shows available benchmark boxes without value markers.

Net Margin (TTM)

Pershing Square (PS) reports a negative net margin of -20.98%, usually indicating a net loss over the period. Meanwhile VeriSign (VRSN) reports 49.07%, ranking against industry peers normally.

PS

Software & Services industry group

-20.98%

Max
41.17%
Q3
15.28%
Median
4.63%
Q1
-5.42%
PS
-20.98%
Min
-33.17%

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

49.07%

VRSN
49.07%
Max
41.17%
Q3
15.28%
Median
4.63%
Q1
-5.42%
Min
-33.17%
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): A comparison of their net margin against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Pershing Square (PS) reports a negative operating margin of -35.45%, usually indicating that operating costs exceeded revenue at the operating-income line. Meanwhile VeriSign (VRSN) reports 68.62%, ranking against industry peers normally.

PS

Software & Services industry group

-35.45%

Max
46.89%
Q3
17.64%
Median
8.73%
Q1
-2.13%
Min
-30.45%
PS
-35.45%

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

68.62%

VRSN
68.62%
Max
46.89%
Q3
17.64%
Median
8.73%
Q1
-2.13%
Min
-30.45%
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): A comparison of their operating margin against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN)
MetricPSVRSN
ROE (TTM)----
ROA (TTM)--54.90%
Net Margin (TTM)-20.98%49.07%
Operating Margin (TTM)-35.45%68.62%
Gross Margin (TTM)24.74%88.57%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Pershing Square (PS) at 64.66% delivers above-range revenue growth, while VeriSign (VRSN) at 6.37% falls into the bottom quartile — a wide split in revenue momentum.

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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: VeriSign (VRSN) reports EPS growth of 10.13%, ranked against its industry; Pershing Square (PS) has no EPS growth figure this period.

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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN)
MetricPSVRSN
Revenue Growth (YoY)64.66%6.37%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)--5.15%
EPS Growth (YoY)--10.13%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)--12.18%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Short-term liquidity can only be read on one side of this pairing: VeriSign (VRSN) shows current ratio of 0.42 against its industry benchmark, while Pershing Square (PS) has no reading this period.

PS

Software & Services industry group

--

Max
5.11
Q3
2.77
Median
1.67
Q1
1.01
Min
0.03
PS
--

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

0.42

Max
5.11
Q3
2.77
Median
1.67
Q1
1.01
VRSN
0.42
Min
0.03
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): PS does not report current ratio, so it has no value marker; VRSN is benchmarked against the Software & Services industry group.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Only one side’s leverage can be read here: Pershing Square (PS) carries debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18 against its industry range, while VeriSign (VRSN) reports no figure this period.

PS

Software & Services industry group

0.18

Max
2.52
Q3
1.13
Median
0.40
PS
0.18
Q1
0.07
Min
0.00

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

--

Max
2.52
Q3
1.13
Median
0.40
Q1
0.07
Min
0.00
VRSN
--
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): VRSN does not report debt-to-equity ratio, so it has no value marker; PS is benchmarked against the Software & Services industry group.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN)
MetricPSVRSN
Current Ratio (MRQ)--0.42
Debt / Equity (MRQ)0.18--
Net Debt / EBITDA4.351.09

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Pershing Square (PS) at 0.24% and VeriSign (VRSN) at 1.03% yield above their industries’ entire benchmark ranges — high enough that dividend safety, not income, becomes the first question.

PS

Software & Services industry group

0.24%

PS
0.24%
Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

1.03%

VRSN
1.03%
Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Pershing Square (PS) reports a negative payout ratio of -10.99%, usually because earnings are negative; the payout ratio is not a useful dividend-sustainability benchmark in that state. Meanwhile VeriSign (VRSN) reports 34.45%, ranking against industry peers normally.

PS

Software & Services industry group

-10.99%

Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
PS
-10.99%

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

34.45%

VRSN
34.45%
Max
0.00%
Q3
0.00%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN)
MetricPSVRSN
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.24%1.03%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)-10.99%34.45%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

An earnings multiple is available for just one side: VeriSign (VRSN) trades at 33.23 times trailing earnings, ranked against its peers, while Pershing Square (PS) has no P/E ratio this period.

PS

Software & Services industry group

--

Max
112.94
Q3
60.32
Median
32.91
Q1
18.77
Min
6.69
PS
--

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

33.23

Max
112.94
Q3
60.32
VRSN
33.23
Median
32.91
Q1
18.77
Min
6.69
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): PS does not report P/E ratio, so it has no value marker; VRSN is benchmarked against the Software & Services industry group.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both look expensive on sales: VeriSign (VRSN) at 15.99 sits in the upper P/S ratio quartile, and Pershing Square (PS) at 27.11 prices even higher, above its industry range.

PS

Software & Services industry group

27.11

PS
27.11
Max
17.91
Q3
8.78
Median
4.25
Q1
2.23
Min
0.02

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

15.99

Max
17.91
VRSN
15.99
Q3
8.78
Median
4.25
Q1
2.23
Min
0.02
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

VeriSign (VRSN) reports a negative P/B ratio of -12.13, meaning negative book equity — the multiple itself is not meaningful for valuation. Meanwhile Pershing Square (PS) reports 15.12, ranking against industry peers normally.

PS

Software & Services industry group

15.12

Max
16.63
PS
15.12
Q3
8.50
Median
4.30
Q1
1.92
Min
-3.90

VRSN

Software & Services industry group

-12.13

Max
16.63
Q3
8.50
Median
4.30
Q1
1.92
Min
-3.90
VRSN
-12.13
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Pershing Square (PS) vs. VeriSign (VRSN): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Pershing Square (PS) and VeriSign (VRSN)
MetricPSVRSN
P/E Ratio (TTM)--33.23
P/S Ratio (TTM)27.1115.99
P/B Ratio (MRQ)15.12-12.13
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)--2.89%