Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ Position Increased by Forsta AP Fonden

Forsta AP Fonden grew its position in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) by 5.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 100,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,500 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Nasdaq were worth $9,762,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Nasdaq by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,916,887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,819,727,000 after purchasing an additional 268,481 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Nasdaq by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 27,627,767 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,683,485,000 after acquiring an additional 1,258,964 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Nasdaq by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,619,192 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,735,318,000 after buying an additional 1,404,348 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Nasdaq by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,851,894 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,243,807,000 after buying an additional 378,577 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at about $530,100,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NDAQ opened at $92.52 on Monday. Nasdaq, Inc. has a twelve month low of $77.09 and a twelve month high of $101.79. The firm has a market cap of $52.32 billion, a PE ratio of 27.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The business has a fifty day moving average of $88.19 and a 200-day moving average of $90.05.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.79 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This is a positive change from Nasdaq’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.53%.

Insider Transactions at Nasdaq

In related news, SVP Michelle Lynn Daly sold 1,323 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.82, for a total value of $117,508.86. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,089 shares in the company, valued at $896,104.98. This trade represents a 11.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 7,710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.82, for a total value of $700,222.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 141,035 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,808,798.70. This represents a 5.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 231,002 shares of company stock worth $20,295,941 in the last ninety days. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NDAQ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Nasdaq from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Loop Capital set a $113.00 target price on Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays upped their target price on Nasdaq from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Nasdaq from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.15.

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.