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

Shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $72.86.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NDAQ. Bank of America raised shares of Nasdaq from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $53.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Nasdaq from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Nasdaq from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Barclays increased their target price on Nasdaq from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Nasdaq from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nasdaq

In other news, major shareholder Seller Lp Argus sold 42,804,207 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.58, for a total value of $2,764,295,688.06. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 42,804,207 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,764,295,688.06. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nasdaq

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Smithfield Trust Co increased its holdings in Nasdaq by 22.0% during the first quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 960 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust increased its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 11,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $715,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Nasdaq by 5.4% during the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 3,826 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its position in Nasdaq by 0.6% in the second quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 32,647 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,967,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 89.3% in the first quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 426 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the period. 72.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nasdaq Price Performance

Nasdaq stock opened at $72.56 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.19, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.95. Nasdaq has a 52-week low of $46.88 and a 52-week high of $74.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $69.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.96.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.05. Nasdaq had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 15.45%. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.13 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.71 earnings per share. Nasdaq’s revenue was up 25.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Nasdaq will post 2.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.53%.

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.