Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Brokerages maintain a “Buy” consensus on Nasdaq, with nine buy, two strong-buy and one hold ratings. The average 12-month price target is $109.73, above the reported opening price of $94.19.
• Nasdaq exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted earnings of $1.07 per share versus the $0.98 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 14.9% year over year to $2.53 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share, equivalent to an annualized $1.24 payout and a 1.3% yield; institutional investors own 72.47% of outstanding shares.

Shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from the twelve brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have given a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $109.7273.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Nasdaq from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $111.00 target price (up from $108.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Friday, July 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Nasdaq from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, May 3rd.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

Shares of Nasdaq stock opened at $94.19 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $52.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Nasdaq has a 12-month low of $76.55 and a 12-month high of $101.79. The business's 50 day moving average is $87.81 and its 200-day moving average is $88.29.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.09. Nasdaq had a net margin of 22.60% and a return on equity of 18.38%. The business had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.46 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.85 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Nasdaq will post 4.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Ab Investor purchased 56,782 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $85.98 per share, for a total transaction of $4,882,116.36. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 58,439,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,024,603,103.84. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 13,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total value of $1,203,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 128,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,881,214.73. This represents a 9.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 41,797 shares of company stock valued at $3,926,319. Insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Nasdaq

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. bought a new position in Nasdaq during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC acquired a new position in Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company's stock.

About Nasdaq

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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