Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ Shares Sold by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its stake in Nasdaq by 48.2% in Q4, selling 154,175 shares and ending the period with 165,499 shares worth about $16.08 million.
• CEO Adena T. Friedman sold 300,000 shares for roughly $29.07 million on Feb 2, and insiders have sold a total of 697,340 shares (~$66.8M) over the last 90 days, leaving insiders with 0.70% ownership.
• Nasdaq beat Q4 expectations with EPS of $0.96 vs. $0.92 consensus and revenue of $2.12 billion (up 13.4% YoY), and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 (annualized $1.08, 1.3% yield) payable March 30.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. decreased its position in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 48.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 165,499 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 154,175 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Nasdaq were worth $16,075,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Nasdaq in the second quarter valued at approximately $406,823,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 3,848,406 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC grew its position in shares of Nasdaq by 261.7% during the second quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 2,690,186 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $240,556,000 after acquiring an additional 1,946,479 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 4,365.0% in the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,641,123 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $146,749,000 after acquiring an additional 1,604,368 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 1,404,348 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In related news, CEO Adena T. Friedman sold 300,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.91, for a total value of $29,073,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,924,903 shares of the company's stock, valued at $186,542,349.73. This trade represents a 13.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Zecca sold 4,500 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.01, for a total value of $450,045.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 125,674 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,568,656.74. This represents a 3.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 697,340 shares of company stock valued at $66,803,072 over the last ninety days. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Nasdaq Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ NDAQ opened at $83.78 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.03. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.84 and a 52 week high of $101.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $88.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $90.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.92 by $0.04. Nasdaq had a net margin of 21.77% and a return on equity of 16.90%. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.76 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NDAQ. Morgan Stanley set a $116.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq and gave the stock an "overweight" rating 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. TD Cowen raised shares of Nasdaq from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $105.00 to $106.00 in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $108.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $109.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $103.80.

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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