ASO GROUP Ltd Invests $1.44 Million in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

ASO GROUP Ltd bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 14,808 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,438,000. Nasdaq comprises about 0.6% of ASO GROUP Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NDAQ. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Nasdaq by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,855,235 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $277,329,000 after acquiring an additional 45,783 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in Nasdaq by 27.5% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 61,076 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,933,000 after purchasing an additional 13,160 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Preferred LLC acquired a new position in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $4,872,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC acquired a new position in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $1,245,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Nasdaq by 129.2% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 55,134 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,877,000 after purchasing an additional 31,081 shares in the last quarter. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Nasdaq from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, May 3rd. TD Cowen upgraded Nasdaq from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $106.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Loop Capital set a $113.00 price target on Nasdaq in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price target on Nasdaq in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $107.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Michelle Lynn Daly sold 1,323 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.82, for a total value of $117,508.86. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $896,104.98. This represents a 11.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 7,710 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.82, for a total value of $700,222.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 141,035 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,808,798.70. The trade was a 5.18% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 138,162 shares of company stock worth $11,932,913. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Nasdaq Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ NDAQ opened at $86.74 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $49.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.13, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.09 and a 12-month high of $101.79. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $88.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $90.10.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.42 billion. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 17.51% and a net margin of 23.15%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.79 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. This is an increase from Nasdaq's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Nasdaq's payout ratio is 32.53%.

Nasdaq Profile

Nasdaq, Inc is a global financial technology company that operates one of the world's leading electronic securities exchanges and provides a broad array of products and services to capital markets participants. Its core activities include operating the Nasdaq Stock Market and other trading venues, developing and supplying market technology and matching engines to exchanges and trading firms, licensing market data and indices, and offering clearing, trade execution and post-trade solutions. The company also provides market surveillance, risk management and regulatory technology used by exchanges and regulators.

Founded in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) as the first electronic stock market, Nasdaq has evolved into a diversified marketplace and technology provider.

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