Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Receives Average Recommendation of "Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Nasdaq has an average analyst recommendation of "Buy" from 14 brokerages, with 12 buy ratings, one strong buy, and one hold; the average 12-month price target is about $107.54.
• The company’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, reporting $0.96 EPS on $2.14 billion in revenue, both above consensus estimates, while revenue rose 13.7% year over year.
• Nasdaq recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.31 per share from $0.27, bringing the annualized payout to $1.24 and a yield of about 1.5%.

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Buy" from the fourteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $107.5385.

A number of brokerages have commented on NDAQ. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $104.00 to $98.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Nasdaq from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Nasdaq from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, May 3rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price objective on Nasdaq in a report on Thursday, June 11th.

Insider Transactions at Nasdaq

In other news, insider Cohen Tal sold 15,518 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the insider owned 215,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,530,126. This trade represents a 6.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Ab Investor acquired 56,782 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $85.98 per share, with a total value of $4,882,116.36. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider 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 ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 24,551 shares of company stock worth $2,225,990. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Nasdaq

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NDAQ. Cooper Financial Group lifted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 32.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 3,360 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $265,000 after purchasing an additional 826 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its stake in Nasdaq by 4.0% in the second quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 127,170 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,024,000 after purchasing an additional 4,868 shares during the last quarter. PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab raised its holdings in Nasdaq by 9.1% in the second quarter. PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab now owns 103,999 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,197,000 after purchasing an additional 8,707 shares in the last quarter. Trust Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Nasdaq by 7.9% during the second quarter. Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 4,915 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $387,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Nasdaq by 24.2% in the second quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 3,675 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.47% of the company's stock.

Nasdaq Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of NDAQ opened at $84.39 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.99. Nasdaq has a 12-month low of $76.55 and a 12-month high of $101.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $87.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.07.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.03. Nasdaq had a net margin of 23.15% and a return on equity of 17.51%. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.79 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Nasdaq will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. This is a positive change from Nasdaq's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio is currently 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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