AXQ Capital LP Has $1.43 Million Position in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Key Points

• AXQ Capital LP boosted its Nasdaq stake by 370.1% in the fourth quarter, ending with 14,667 shares worth about $1.43 million.
• Nasdaq reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.96 topping estimates and revenue of $2.14 billion, which was also above expectations and up 13.7% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.31 per share from $0.27, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $107.15.

AXQ Capital LP grew its stake in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 370.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,667 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 11,547 shares during the quarter. AXQ Capital LP's holdings in Nasdaq were worth $1,425,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Nasdaq by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,916,887 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,819,727,000 after purchasing an additional 268,481 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Nasdaq by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 27,627,767 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,683,485,000 after buying an additional 1,258,964 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Nasdaq by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,619,192 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,735,318,000 after buying an additional 1,404,348 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,851,894 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,243,807,000 after purchasing an additional 378,577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $530,100,000. Institutional investors own 72.47% of the company's stock.

Nasdaq Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NDAQ opened at $92.81 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.49 billion, a PE ratio of 27.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.97. Nasdaq, Inc. has a twelve month low of $77.09 and a twelve month high of $101.79. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $88.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $90.08.

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

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from Nasdaq's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.53%.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In related news, 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 transaction of $700,222.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 141,035 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,808,798.70. The trade was a 5.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Michelle Lynn Daly sold 1,323 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.82, for a total value of $117,508.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,089 shares of the company's stock, valued at $896,104.98. The trade was a 11.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 231,002 shares of company stock worth $20,295,941. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nasdaq from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Nasdaq from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $105.00 to $106.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $109.00 price objective on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $107.15.

Nasdaq Company 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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