Advisors Preferred LLC Sells 13,524 Shares of Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Advisors Preferred LLC cut its stake in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) by 26.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 36,883 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,524 shares during the period. Advisors Preferred LLC’s holdings in Nasdaq were worth $3,131,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Nasdaq by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 14,574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,106,000 after acquiring an additional 538 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 34,962 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,652,000 after purchasing an additional 10,110 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 22.0% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 14,351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,089,000 after purchasing an additional 2,584 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 345.5% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 597 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 4.4% during the second quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 11,386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,018,000 after purchasing an additional 481 shares during the last quarter. 72.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NDAQ has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Cowen cut their price target on Nasdaq from $104.00 to $98.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Barclays dropped their target price on Nasdaq from $114.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $113.00 price target (up from $111.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $107.42.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In related news, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 7,710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.82, for a total transaction of $700,222.20. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Ab Investor bought 56,782 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $85.98 per share, for a total transaction of $4,882,116.36. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 58,439,208 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,024,603,103.84. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 24,551 shares of company stock worth $2,225,990. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Nasdaq Trading Down 1.3%

Nasdaq stock opened at $88.01 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. Nasdaq, Inc. has a one year low of $76.55 and a one year high of $101.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.77 billion, a PE ratio of 26.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.99. The business’s fifty day moving average is $87.12 and its 200 day moving average is $88.82.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 17.51% and a net margin of 23.15%.Nasdaq’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.79 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.91 EPS for the current year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a $0.31 dividend. This is an increase from Nasdaq’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio is 37.35%.

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.