Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the twelve research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have given a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $109.7273.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on NDAQ shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Nasdaq from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 3rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 target price on Nasdaq in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Loop Capital set a $113.00 target price on Nasdaq in a report on Friday, April 24th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $113.00 price target (up from $111.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $105.00 price target (up from $101.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Monday, July 20th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Ab Investor purchased 56,782 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $85.98 per share, for a total transaction of $4,882,116.36. Following the purchase, the insider owned 58,439,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,024,603,103.84. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 13,000 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total transaction of $1,203,930.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 128,293 shares in the company, valued at $11,881,214.73. This trade represents a 9.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 41,797 shares of company stock valued at $3,926,319. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nasdaq

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. NBC Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $149,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 4,574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC now owns 7,144 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $606,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC grew its position in Nasdaq by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 2,713 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fielder Capital Group LLC grew its position in Nasdaq by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC now owns 4,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

Shares of Nasdaq stock opened at $94.19 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Nasdaq has a 12-month low of $76.55 and a 12-month high of $101.79. The company has a market capitalization of $52.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.46, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.96. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $87.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $88.29.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.09. Nasdaq had a net margin of 22.60% and a return on equity of 18.38%. The company had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Nasdaq will post 4.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Nasdaq’s payout ratio is currently 36.15%.

About Nasdaq

Nasdaq, Inc is a global financial technology company that operates one of the world’s leading electronic securities exchanges and provides a broad array of products and services to capital markets participants. Its core activities include operating the Nasdaq Stock Market and other trading venues, developing and supplying market technology and matching engines to exchanges and trading firms, licensing market data and indices, and offering clearing, trade execution and post-trade solutions. The company also provides market surveillance, risk management and regulatory technology used by exchanges and regulators.

Founded in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) as the first electronic stock market, Nasdaq has evolved into a diversified marketplace and technology provider.