Lazard Asset Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Lazard Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) by 38.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 538,084 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 339,012 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Nasdaq were worth $45,678,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on NDAQ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Loop Capital set a $113.00 price objective on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $111.00 price objective (up from $108.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $113.00 target price (up from $111.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Nasdaq currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $109.73.

Nasdaq Stock Up 2.0%

Nasdaq stock opened at $93.94 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.51 billion, a PE ratio of 27.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $87.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.40. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 12 month low of $76.55 and a 12 month high of $101.79.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.85 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Ab Investor acquired 56,782 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $85.98 per share, with a total value 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.60% 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.