Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Sets New 1-Year High - Here's What Happened

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $85.72 and last traded at $85.25, with a volume of 1210210 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $85.61.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley cut Nasdaq from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $74.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Nasdaq from $84.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nasdaq from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 18th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "cautious" rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Monday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $86.50.

Nasdaq Trading Down 0.0%

The company has a market cap of $49.15 billion, a PE ratio of 44.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.00. The stock's 50 day moving average is $77.19 and its 200-day moving average is $78.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.22 billion. Nasdaq had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 14.82%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.63 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.26%. This is a boost from Nasdaq's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Nasdaq's payout ratio is presently 49.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nasdaq

In other Nasdaq news, EVP Bryan Everard Smith sold 657 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.81, for a total value of $47,179.17. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 61,980 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,450,783.80. The trade was a 1.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sarah Youngwood sold 14,959 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.68, for a total transaction of $1,102,179.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 59,694 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,398,253.92. This represents a 20.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 23,616 shares of company stock valued at $1,813,598 in the last quarter. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nasdaq

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. NINE MASTS CAPITAL Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Nasdaq in the fourth quarter valued at about $274,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 892.3% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 60,647 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,689,000 after purchasing an additional 54,535 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Nasdaq by 26.1% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 44,173 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,454,000 after purchasing an additional 9,130 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,749,000. Finally, Farallon Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Nasdaq by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 3,998,019 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $309,087,000 after buying an additional 235,748 shares during the period. 72.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Nasdaq

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.

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