Blue Jean Financial LLC Acquires New Holdings in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Key Points

• Blue Jean Financial LLC opened a new position in Nasdaq, buying 19,609 shares valued at about $1.9 million, making NDAQ its 20th-largest holding.
• Nasdaq reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.96 versus estimates of $0.93 and revenue of $2.14 billion, up 13.7% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.31 per share from $0.27, while analysts remain constructive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $107.36.

Blue Jean Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 19,609 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,905,000. Nasdaq makes up about 1.5% of Blue Jean Financial LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bollard Group LLC raised its position in shares of Nasdaq by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Bollard Group LLC now owns 73,109 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,101,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Nasdaq by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,241 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $412,000 after buying an additional 882 shares in the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $2,569,000. Jacobi Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $223,000. Finally, AlTi Global Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at $322,000. Institutional investors own 72.47% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Cohen Tal sold 15,518 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.75, for a total value of $1,408,258.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 215,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,530,126. This represents a 6.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 7,710 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.82, for a total value of $700,222.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 138,162 shares of company stock worth $11,932,913. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Nasdaq Trading Up 2.6%

NASDAQ:NDAQ opened at $88.98 on Friday. Nasdaq, Inc. has a twelve month low of $77.09 and a twelve month high of $101.79. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $88.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $90.10. The company has a market cap of $50.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.97.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.03. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 17.51% and a net margin of 23.15%.The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.79 EPS. The business's revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect 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 issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This is a boost from Nasdaq's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Nasdaq's payout ratio is currently 32.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on NDAQ shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. TD Cowen raised Nasdaq from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $106.00 in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $109.00 price objective on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price target on Nasdaq in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $107.36.

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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