Virtu Financial LLC Invests $253,000 in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Key Points

• Virtu Financial LLC has acquired 3,330 shares of Nasdaq, Inc., valued at approximately $253,000, indicating growing interest from institutional investors.
• Nasdaq's recent earnings report showed earnings per share of $0.85, exceeding expectations, along with a revenue of $1.31 billion, marking a 12.7% increase year-over-year.
• Several brokerages have raised their price targets for Nasdaq shares, with Barclays setting a new target of $109.00, reflecting positive analyst sentiment towards the stock.

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,330 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $253,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Nasdaq by 194.6% in the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 327 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Nasdaq by 1,509.5% in the 1st quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 338 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NDAQ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Nasdaq from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $96.00 price objective (up from $84.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $95.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $97.06.

Nasdaq Price Performance

Nasdaq stock traded down $0.54 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $93.96. 1,770,148 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,418,665. The firm has a market cap of $53.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $91.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $82.71. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 1-year low of $64.84 and a 1-year high of $97.63.

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

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.54%.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In other Nasdaq news, SVP Michelle Lynn Daly sold 8,691 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.45, for a total transaction of $812,173.95. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 8,879 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $829,742.55. This trade represents a 49.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 2,105 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.49, for a total transaction of $201,006.45. Following 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. Insiders sold a total of 32,409 shares of company stock worth $2,887,839 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

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.