Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $23.30 Million Stock Holdings in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management cut its Nasdaq holdings by 50.4% in the second quarter, selling 299,859 shares and retaining 295,578 shares valued at approximately $23.3 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 72.47% of NDAQ.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with Nasdaq receiving an average “Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $110.30. Recent targets range from $102 to $120, while Zacks upgraded the stock to “Strong Buy.”
• Nasdaq exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.07 in EPS versus the $0.98 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 14.9% year over year to $2.53 billion. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share, equivalent to a 1.3% annualized yield.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. trimmed its holdings in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 50.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 295,578 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 299,859 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.05% of Nasdaq worth $23,297,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NDAQ. Trust Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 7.9% in the second quarter. Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 4,915 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $387,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Nasdaq by 24.2% during the second quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 3,675 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $290,000 after acquiring an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 15.0% during the second quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 7,304 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $576,000 after acquiring an additional 950 shares during the period. Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the second quarter worth $746,000. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC lifted its position in Nasdaq by 928.8% in the 2nd quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 679 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 613 shares in the last quarter. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on NDAQ shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $120.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $111.00 price target (up from $108.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research raised Nasdaq from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Nasdaq from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 target price on Nasdaq in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $110.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Pc Nelson Griggs sold 11,010 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.35, for a total transaction of $1,060,813.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 205,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,751,846.35. This represents a 5.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 13,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total value of $1,203,930.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 128,293 shares in the company, valued at $11,881,214.73. This trade represents a 9.20% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 41,797 shares of company stock worth $3,926,319. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Nasdaq Price Performance

Nasdaq stock opened at $94.59 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $52.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.96. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.55 and a 1-year high of $101.79. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $88.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $88.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. Nasdaq had a net margin of 22.60% and a return on equity of 18.38%. The company's revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.85 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 4.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.15%.

About Nasdaq

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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