Short Interest in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Declines By 34.2%

Key Points

• Short interest in Nasdaq fell 34.2% to 6.08 million shares as of August 31, representing about 1.1% of shares outstanding and 2.3 days of average trading volume.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $110.30; recent targets ranged from $110 to $120.
• Nasdaq reported quarterly earnings of $1.07 per share, beating estimates of $0.98, while revenue increased 14.9% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share, yielding approximately 1.4% annually.

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 6,083,576 shares, a decline of 34.2% from the August 15th total of 9,248,434 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,616,255 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $113.00 target price (up from $111.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and set a $111.00 price target (up from $108.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Friday, July 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price objective on Nasdaq in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Nasdaq from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nasdaq presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $110.30.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

Nasdaq stock traded up $2.55 on Thursday, reaching $91.31. 3,662,668 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,844,990. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Nasdaq has a twelve month low of $76.55 and a twelve month high of $101.79. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $94.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $89.59. The stock has a market cap of $51.04 billion, a PE ratio of 26.62, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.97.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.09. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 18.38% and a net margin of 22.60%.The business had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.85 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Nasdaq will post 4.15 EPS for the current year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Nelson Griggs sold 11,010 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.35, for a total value of $1,060,813.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 205,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,751,846.35. This represents a 5.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 13,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total transaction of $1,203,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 128,293 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,881,214.73. This represents a 9.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 42,922 shares of company stock worth $4,032,316. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nasdaq

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC lifted its holdings in Nasdaq by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC now owns 7,144 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $606,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC now owns 4,571 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $444,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its holdings in Nasdaq by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 5,643 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $479,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the period. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC lifted its position in Nasdaq by 5.9% during the first quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC now owns 2,603 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 1.7% during the second quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 8,815 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $695,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Nasdaq

Nasdaq, Inc NASDAQ: NDAQ operates financial markets and provides technology, data and analytics services to exchanges, brokers, institutional investors, corporations and other financial institutions. The company is best known for operating the Nasdaq Stock Market, a major U.S. equities exchange and a prominent venue for technology and growth companies.

Nasdaq's businesses include listings, trading, market data, indexes, clearing and market infrastructure solutions. Through its technology platforms, the company provides exchange operators and financial institutions with systems for trading, surveillance, risk management, regulatory compliance and other market functions.

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