Insider Buying: Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Major Shareholder Buys 56,782 Shares of Stock

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) major shareholder Ab Investor purchased 56,782 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $85.98 per share, with a total value of $4,882,116.36. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 58,439,208 shares in the company, valued at $5,024,603,103.84. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

Shares of NDAQ stock traded up $2.06 on Monday, hitting $91.04. 3,288,115 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,873,004. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $88.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $90.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.49 billion, a PE ratio of 27.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Nasdaq, Inc. has a one year low of $77.09 and a one year high of $101.79.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion for 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.79 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a positive change from Nasdaq’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Nasdaq’s payout ratio is currently 37.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on NDAQ. Loop Capital set a $113.00 price target on Nasdaq in a report on Friday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised 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 raised Nasdaq from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, May 3rd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $109.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price target on Nasdaq in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $107.36.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nasdaq

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.