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

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $82.40.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on NDAQ shares. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Nasdaq from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Raymond James upgraded Nasdaq from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $82.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Nasdaq from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Monday, November 25th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $88.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nasdaq news, insider Pc Nelson Griggs sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.71, for a total transaction of $454,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 215,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,320,274.73. This represents a 2.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 13,642 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.32, for a total transaction of $1,027,515.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 142,830 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,757,955.60. This trade represents a 8.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 49,459 shares of company stock valued at $3,811,808. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nasdaq

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NDAQ. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 94.8% in the second quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 415 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Nasdaq in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Claro Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Focused Wealth Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

Shares of Nasdaq stock opened at $78.22 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business has a 50-day moving average of $79.06 and a 200 day moving average of $72.19. Nasdaq has a 12 month low of $54.90 and a 12 month high of $83.77.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. Nasdaq had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 14.56%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 21.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.71 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Nasdaq will post 2.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. Nasdaq’s payout ratio is currently 57.49%.

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.