S Bank Fund Management Ltd Buys New Shares in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ)

Key Points

• S Bank Fund Management Ltd acquired 10,328 shares of Nasdaq, Inc., valued at approximately $783,000, indicating robust institutional interest in the financial services provider.
• Nasdaq reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with revenue reaching $1.31 billion, a 12.7% increase year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 1.1%, with a payout ratio of 41.54%.

S Bank Fund Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 10,328 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $783,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of Nasdaq by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 581,646 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,124,000 after acquiring an additional 14,535 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of Nasdaq by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 276,861 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $20,973,000 after acquiring an additional 13,820 shares during the period. Prudential PLC raised its position in shares of Nasdaq by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 148,723 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,282,000 after acquiring an additional 9,773 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Nasdaq by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 138,832 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,511,000 after acquiring an additional 8,914 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowpoint Investment Partners Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Nasdaq in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $273,000. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Michelle Lynn Daly sold 8,691 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.45, for a total value of $812,173.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 8,879 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $829,742.55. This trade represents a 49.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 11,508 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 111,035 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,867,680.45. This represents a 9.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 32,409 shares of company stock valued at $2,887,839 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Nasdaq Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NDAQ traded down $0.17 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $95.40. 2,459,288 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,719,879. The company has a market cap of $54.74 billion, a PE ratio of 36.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.00. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.84 and a 52 week high of $97.63. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $90.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $82.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.26 billion. Nasdaq had a net margin of 18.59% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.69 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on NDAQ. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $96.00 target price (up from $84.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $75.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $101.00 target price (up from $96.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $95.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $97.06.

Nasdaq 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.