Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ Stock: Ascent Group LLC Lowers Position

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC cut its Nasdaq stake by 35.1% in the third quarter, selling 9,690 shares and retaining 17,940 shares valued at about $1.65 million.
• Institutional investors own 72.47% of Nasdaq shares. Analysts’ consensus rating is Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $113.53.
• Nasdaq beat quarterly earnings estimates with EPS of $1.04 versus $1.02 expected; revenue rose 12.6% year over year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share.

Ascent Group LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 35.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,940 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 9,690 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Nasdaq were worth $1,651,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Nasdaq during the second quarter valued at $2,931,637,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Nasdaq in the 2nd quarter worth $603,631,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in Nasdaq in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $377,818,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Nasdaq in the second quarter worth $220,130,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in shares of Nasdaq in the second quarter worth $180,099,000. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NDAQ has been the subject of several research reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their price target on Nasdaq from $110.00 to $107.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Zacks Research lowered Nasdaq from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $118.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $135.00 to $132.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $113.53.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In other Nasdaq news, insider Tal Cohen sold 10,390 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.34, for a total transaction of $1,073,702.60. Following the sale, the insider owned 205,076 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,192,553.84. This represents a 4.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bradley Peterson sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.75, for a total transaction of $538,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 109,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,777,721.50. This trade represents a 4.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 32,452 shares of company stock worth $3,366,669 in the last quarter. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Nasdaq Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NDAQ stock opened at $107.12 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $96.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $90.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. Nasdaq, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $76.55 and a fifty-two week high of $111.45. The company has a market cap of $59.45 billion, a PE ratio of 29.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.95.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. Nasdaq had a net margin of 22.81% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 4.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 4th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Nasdaq's payout ratio is 33.88%.

Nasdaq Company Profile

Nasdaq, Inc is a global technology and financial markets company best known for operating the Nasdaq Stock Market. Its exchange services support the listing and trading of equities and other financial products, and the company provides market data and trading technology to exchanges, brokers, investors, and other financial institutions.

Nasdaq also develops software and services for financial institutions and corporations, including solutions for regulatory compliance, market surveillance, and the detection and prevention of financial crime.

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