Two Sigma Advisers LP Cuts Stock Position in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ)

Two Sigma Advisers LP lessened its stake in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) by 14.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,326,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 389,300 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned 0.40% of Nasdaq worth $179,869,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Olstein Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in Nasdaq by 35.6% in the fourth quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 80,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,185,000 after purchasing an additional 21,000 shares during the last quarter. NINE MASTS CAPITAL Ltd acquired a new stake in Nasdaq in the fourth quarter worth about $274,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Nasdaq by 75.7% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 53,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,170,000 after acquiring an additional 23,244 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in Nasdaq by 892.3% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 60,647 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,689,000 after acquiring an additional 54,535 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Nasdaq by 26.1% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 44,173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,454,000 after acquiring an additional 9,130 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

Nasdaq Stock Up 0.8%

Nasdaq stock opened at $81.90 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.02 billion, a PE ratio of 42.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.00. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.28 and a 12 month high of $84.15. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $75.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $77.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.22 billion. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 14.82% and a net margin of 15.10%. The business’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.63 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This is a boost from Nasdaq’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%. Nasdaq’s payout ratio is 49.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Bryan Everard Smith sold 657 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.81, for a total transaction of $47,179.17. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 61,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,450,783.80. The trade was a 1.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sarah Youngwood sold 14,959 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.68, for a total value of $1,102,179.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 59,694 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,398,253.92. The trade was a 20.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on NDAQ shares. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Nasdaq from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Nasdaq from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on Nasdaq from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Nasdaq from $84.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Nasdaq from $87.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.50.

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.