Adena Friedman Sells 92,840 Shares of Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Stock

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) CEO Adena Friedman sold 92,840 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.08, for a total transaction of $8,363,027.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,079,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $187,305,415.84. This trade represents a 4.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Nasdaq Stock Down 2.4%

NASDAQ:NDAQ opened at $85.50 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $48.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $91.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $90.85. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52-week low of $64.84 and a 52-week high of $101.79.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.92 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.37 billion. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 16.90% and a net margin of 21.77%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.76 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $116.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price objective (up from $115.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Monday, January 12th. Argus raised shares of Nasdaq to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Nasdaq from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $105.00 to $106.00 in a report on Thursday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $103.80.

Institutional Trading of Nasdaq

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Nasdaq by 33.5% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 27,274,620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,438,897,000 after acquiring an additional 6,840,735 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Nasdaq in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $530,100,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Nasdaq by 6.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,648,406 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,275,902,000 after purchasing an additional 3,848,406 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Nasdaq by 62.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,266,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $900,061,000 after purchasing an additional 3,567,843 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC raised its holdings in Nasdaq by 82.0% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 6,073,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $589,897,000 after purchasing an additional 2,736,322 shares during the period. 72.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Nasdaq News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Nasdaq this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street analysts’ consensus price targets imply meaningful upside (Zacks reports a 27.9% mean upside), supporting a constructive medium-term view for NDAQ as analysts have been raising earnings estimates. Wall Street Analysts Predict a 27.92% Upside in Nasdaq (NDAQ)
• Positive Sentiment: Nasdaq recently announced a quarterly dividend ($0.27/share), adding steady income support and signaling confidence in cash flow — a modest positive for yield-seeking investors. MarketBeat Nasdaq Overview
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest fell ~17% during February (to ~6.6M shares), reducing immediate short-pressure and lowering the risk of continued downside from short-covering dynamics. Nasdaq Announces End-of-Month Open Short Interest Positions
• Positive Sentiment: Recent analyst upgrades and price-target lifts (multiple firms including Morgan Stanley, Barclays, JPMorgan) keep sell‑side sentiment favorable and underpin the stock’s premium valuation multiples. MarketBeat Nasdaq Analyst Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Nasdaq Verafin released a major 2026 Global Financial Crime Report showing a $4.4T estimated global financial-crime total and pledging expanded private‑sector collaboration (including a UN partnership). This highlights Verafin’s market leadership but also underscores rising threat levels that could drive demand for its products — a mixed signal for NDAQ. Nasdaq Verafin 2026 Global Financial Crime Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Nasdaq’s EVP & CFO will present at the BofA Information & Business Services Conference — a routine investor event that may provide management color but is unlikely to move the stock materially unless new guidance or surprises emerge. Nasdaq EVP & CFO to Present at BofA Conference
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary (Barchart) suggests option trades and bullish positioning if market risks subside — useful tactical ideas for derivatives traders but not a direct fundamental catalyst. If the Worst Is Over, NASDAQ Inc Stock May Be a Bargain
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Adena Friedman sold 92,840 shares (~$8.36M) the week of March 6th, trimming her stake ~4.3%. Large insider sales can spook investors even if the sale is for diversification or liquidity reasons. Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman Sells 92,840 Shares

Nasdaq Company Profile

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.