21,791 Shares in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ Acquired by J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG

Key Points

• J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG acquired 21,791 shares of Nasdaq, Inc. valued at approximately $1,949,000 in the 2nd quarter, reflecting institutional interest in the financial services firm.
• Brokerages have shown a positive outlook on Nasdaq, with UBS Group and Barclays increasing their price targets and ratings, indicating strong market confidence.
• Nasdaq's recent quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $0.85, exceeding analyst expectations, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 12.7%.

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG purchased a new position in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 21,791 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,949,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in Nasdaq by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 43,161 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,274,000 after buying an additional 3,096 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas boosted its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 61.1% in the first quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 17,842 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,353,000 after acquiring an additional 6,764 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 1.2% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,268,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $172,098,000 after acquiring an additional 27,622 shares in the last quarter. FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the first quarter valued at approximately $222,000. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Nasdaq by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 861,437 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $65,349,000 after purchasing an additional 32,004 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.47% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NDAQ. UBS Group raised Nasdaq from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $95.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $96.00 target price (up previously from $84.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Nasdaq currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $97.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nasdaq

In other Nasdaq news, SVP Michelle Lynn Daly sold 8,691 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.45, for a total transaction of $812,173.95. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $829,742.55. This trade represents a 49.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 2,105 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.49, for a total value of $201,006.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 92,551 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,837,694.99. The trade was a 2.22% 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.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

Shares of NDAQ opened at $87.61 on Friday. Nasdaq, Inc. has a one year low of $64.84 and a one year high of $97.63. The company has a 50-day moving average of $93.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.45. The stock has a market cap of $50.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.70, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.98. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.07. Nasdaq had a net margin of 18.59% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The firm had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. The company's revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th were given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 12th. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.54%.

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.

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