Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Nasdaq from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays cut their target price on Nasdaq from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Nasdaq from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $80.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Nasdaq from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.88.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

Nasdaq stock opened at $74.91 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.08 billion, a PE ratio of 39.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.96. Nasdaq has a one year low of $58.10 and a one year high of $84.15. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $79.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $77.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.99.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.02. Nasdaq had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 14.82%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Nasdaq will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.00%.

Insider Transactions at Nasdaq

In other Nasdaq news, EVP Bryan Everard Smith sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.56, for a total transaction of $285,460.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,532,778.56. The trade was a 5.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Sarah Youngwood sold 14,959 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.68, for a total transaction of $1,102,179.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 59,694 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,398,253.92. This represents a 20.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nasdaq

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Founders Capital Management bought a new position in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Nasdaq by 106.6% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

Nasdaq Company Profile

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.