D.A. Davidson & CO. Raises Stake in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Key Points

• D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake by 152.0% in Nasdaq during Q4, owning 23,756 shares after adding 14,330 shares, valued at about $2.31 million on its latest 13F filing.
• Heavy insider selling: insiders sold 531,002 shares worth roughly $49.37 million in the last quarter (including Cohen Tal’s 15,518-share sale), and company insiders now own about 0.70% of the stock.
• Operational and shareholder updates: Nasdaq beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.96 vs. $0.93) with revenue of $2.14 billion (up 13.7% YoY) and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.31 (annualized $1.24, ~1.4% yield).

D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 152.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,756 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 14,330 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.'s holdings in Nasdaq were worth $2,307,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Nasdaq by 6.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,648,406 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,275,902,000 after buying an additional 3,848,406 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Nasdaq by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,619,192 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,735,318,000 after buying an additional 1,404,348 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Nasdaq by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 27,627,767 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,683,485,000 after acquiring an additional 1,258,964 shares in the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 2nd quarter worth about $110,259,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 129.0% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 2,159,556 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $191,013,000 after acquiring an additional 1,216,580 shares during the last quarter. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nasdaq

In other news, insider Cohen Tal sold 15,518 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were 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 directly owned 215,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,530,126. This represents a 6.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $117,508.86. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 10,089 shares of the company's stock, valued at $896,104.98. This trade represents a 11.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 531,002 shares of company stock worth $49,368,941 in the last quarter. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Nasdaq Trading Down 0.6%

NASDAQ:NDAQ opened at $91.32 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $51.65 billion, a PE ratio of 27.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.02. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52-week low of $76.86 and a 52-week high of $101.79. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $86.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $89.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $1.42 billion. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 17.51% and a net margin of 23.15%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.79 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.86 EPS for the current year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be given a $0.31 dividend. This is a positive change from Nasdaq's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Nasdaq's payout ratio is currently 37.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NDAQ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 target price (up from $115.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Loop Capital set a $113.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Friday, April 24th. 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 restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $108.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $107.15.

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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