Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ Shares Acquired by Danske Bank A S

Key Points

• Danske Bank A/S increased its holding in Nasdaq by 9.9% in Q4 to 348,622 shares (added 31,377 shares), representing about 0.06% of the company valued at roughly $33.86 million.
• Nasdaq beat expectations in its most recent quarter with EPS of $0.96 versus $0.93 consensus and revenue of $2.14 billion (expected $1.42 billion), a 13.7% year-over-year revenue increase.
• Nasdaq raised its quarterly dividend to $0.31 (annualized $1.24) from $0.27, with an ex-dividend date of June 12 and payment scheduled for June 26.

Danske Bank A S raised its holdings in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 9.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 348,622 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 31,377 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S owned approximately 0.06% of Nasdaq worth $33,862,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NDAQ. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 0.5% in the 4th 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 lifted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 1,258,964 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 1,404,348 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,044,521 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $446,188,000 after purchasing an additional 532,775 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,198,608 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $371,367,000 after purchasing an additional 116,542 shares during the period. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 7,710 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.82, for a total transaction of $700,222.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 141,035 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,808,798.70. This trade represents a 5.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Cohen Tal sold 15,518 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.75, for a total transaction of $1,408,258.50. Following the sale, the insider owned 215,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,530,126. The trade was a 6.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 531,002 shares of company stock worth $49,368,941. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on NDAQ. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $108.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Argus upgraded shares of Nasdaq to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $120.00 target price (up from $115.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Monday, January 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $107.15.

Nasdaq Price Performance

Nasdaq stock opened at $91.32 on Friday. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52-week low of $76.86 and a 52-week high of $101.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.51, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $86.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $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 earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 quarterly revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.79 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Nasdaq's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Nasdaq's payout ratio is presently 37.35%.

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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