Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Sets New 12-Month Low - What's Next?

Key Points

• Nasdaq shares hit a new 52-week low, trading as low as $77.08 after closing previously at $78.56, despite elevated volume of about 2.9 million shares.
• Analyst sentiment remains relatively constructive, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $106.79, well above the current share price. Several firms recently reiterated or raised targets, including Barclays at $116 and Loop Capital at $113.
• The company recently posted solid earnings and revenue growth, beating quarterly EPS estimates and reporting revenue of $2.14 billion, up 13.7% year over year. Nasdaq also increased its quarterly dividend to $0.31 from $0.27.

Shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $77.08 and last traded at $76.7950, with a volume of 2901453 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $78.56.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NDAQ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price target on Nasdaq in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Nasdaq from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Loop Capital set a $113.00 price objective on Nasdaq in a report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen raised Nasdaq from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Nasdaq from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $106.79.

Nasdaq Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $88.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $89.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $43.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.15, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.97.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.42 billion. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 17.51% and a net margin of 23.15%.The business's revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. This is an increase from Nasdaq's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nasdaq

In other news, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 7,710 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.82, for a total transaction of $700,222.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 141,035 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,808,798.70. This trade represents a 5.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Ab Investor bought 56,782 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 58,439,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,024,603,103.84. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 138,162 shares of company stock valued at $11,932,913. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NDAQ. Western Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 14.5% in the first quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,786 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $661,000 after buying an additional 987 shares during the last quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 31.4% during the first quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Europe Ltd now owns 47,298 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,015,000 after buying an additional 11,298 shares during the last quarter. Militia Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the first quarter worth about $555,000. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in Nasdaq by 58.4% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 8,747 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $743,000 after acquiring an additional 3,225 shares during the period. Finally, Carlson Capital L.P. purchased a new stake in Nasdaq during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,672,000. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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