Gabelli Funds LLC Purchases 3,445 Shares of Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC increased its holdings in Nasdaq, Inc. by 70.2%, now owning 8,350 shares valued at approximately $633,000.
• Insiders have sold a total of 24,409 shares of Nasdaq stock worth over $2.2 million in the past three months, reducing their ownership to 0.70%.
• Recent analyst reports show a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" on Nasdaq shares, with target prices raised by several firms, including Barclays and Royal Bank Of Canada.

Gabelli Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 70.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,350 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 3,445 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in Nasdaq were worth $633,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. FORA Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the first quarter worth about $664,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Nasdaq by 24.9% during the 1st quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,558 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $192,000 after purchasing an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in Nasdaq by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 64,012 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,856,000 after purchasing an additional 5,507 shares during the last quarter. Groupe la Francaise boosted its position in Nasdaq by 15.1% in the first quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 59,451 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,540,000 after buying an additional 7,819 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sax Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Nasdaq by 0.5% in the first quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 30,082 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,282,000 after buying an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. 72.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Michelle Lynn Daly sold 8,691 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.45, for a total transaction of $812,173.95. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,879 shares in the company, valued at $829,742.55. This represents a 49.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 2,105 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.49, for a total transaction of $201,006.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 92,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,837,694.99. The trade was a 2.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 24,409 shares of company stock valued at $2,223,599. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on NDAQ shares. UBS Group upgraded Nasdaq from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $95.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $96.00 target price (up previously from $84.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $101.00 price target (up from $96.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Nasdaq from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Nasdaq has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $97.06.

Nasdaq Trading Up 0.2%

NDAQ stock traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $93.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 688,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,230,496. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 12 month low of $64.84 and a 12 month high of $97.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The business's 50 day moving average price is $92.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $83.51. The company has a market cap of $53.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.02.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.07. Nasdaq had a net margin of 18.59% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The company had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.69 EPS. The business's revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. Nasdaq's payout ratio is presently 41.54%.

Nasdaq Company Profile

Nasdaq, Inc operates as a technology company that serves capital markets and other industries worldwide. It operates in three segments: Capital Access Platforms, Financial Technology, and Market Services. The Capital Access Platforms segment sells and distributes historical and real-time market data; and develops and licenses Nasdaq-branded indices and financial products.