Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seventeen brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $88.06.

Several analysts recently commented on NDAQ shares. UBS Group reissued a “cautious” rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th.

Nasdaq Trading Up 0.5%

NDAQ opened at $89.93 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Nasdaq has a 52-week low of $59.95 and a 52-week high of $90.35. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $83.20 and its 200-day moving average is $79.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.01.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.02. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 15.38% and a net margin of 16.36%. The company had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.63 EPS. Nasdaq’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Nasdaq will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th were paid a $0.27 dividend. This is a positive change from Nasdaq’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 11,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.87, for a total transaction of $1,022,715.96. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 111,035 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,867,680.45. The trade was a 9.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Pc Nelson Griggs sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.03, for a total value of $664,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 211,405 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,552,957.15. The trade was a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,613 shares of company stock valued at $1,874,659 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nasdaq

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $424,285,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the first quarter valued at approximately $241,614,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 37.9% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,005,047 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $464,676,000 after purchasing an additional 1,650,201 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Nasdaq by 40.8% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,494,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $416,795,000 after purchasing an additional 1,592,057 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter worth approximately $105,481,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

About Nasdaq

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.