Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Acquires 6,840,735 Shares of Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) by 33.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,274,620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,840,735 shares during the quarter. Nasdaq accounts for about 0.8% of Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 4.75% of Nasdaq worth $2,438,897,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 35.9% in the second quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 64,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,737,000 after acquiring an additional 16,950 shares in the last quarter. 111 Capital increased its position in Nasdaq by 67.0% during the 2nd quarter. 111 Capital now owns 11,089 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $992,000 after purchasing an additional 4,450 shares during the period. FORA Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nasdaq in the 1st quarter valued at about $664,000. Fiduciary Alliance LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 18.9% in the 2nd quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 25,012 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,237,000 after purchasing an additional 3,976 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Nasdaq by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 64,012 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,856,000 after purchasing an additional 5,507 shares during the period. 72.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on NDAQ shares. Morgan Stanley set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Nasdaq and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 target price (up previously from $99.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $108.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.67.

Nasdaq Stock Down 0.4%

NDAQ stock opened at $87.08 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.72 billion, a PE ratio of 31.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.98. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.84 and a 52 week high of $97.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $88.99 and a 200 day moving average of $88.57.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. Nasdaq had a net margin of 19.90% and a return on equity of 16.28%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.74 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. Nasdaq’s payout ratio is presently 38.57%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 2,105 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.40, for a total transaction of $179,767.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 84,974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,256,779.60. The trade was a 2.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Nasdaq Company Profile

Nasdaq, Inc operates as a technology company that serves capital markets and other industries worldwide. It operates in three segments: Capital Access Platforms, Financial Technology, and Market Services. The Capital Access Platforms segment sells and distributes historical and real-time market data; and develops and licenses Nasdaq-branded indices and financial products.