TD Cowen Increases Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Price Target to $104.00

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) had its price target increased by analysts at TD Cowen from $96.00 to $104.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “hold” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. TD Cowen’s target price indicates a potential upside of 3.72% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on NDAQ. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $108.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $111.00 target price (up from $110.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Barclays set a $115.00 price objective on Nasdaq and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price target (up from $115.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Monday. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Nasdaq currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.53.

Nasdaq Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NDAQ traded up $1.38 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $100.27. 794,205 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,182,949. The company has a market capitalization of $57.25 billion, a PE ratio of 35.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The business has a 50 day moving average of $92.61 and a 200 day moving average of $91.80. Nasdaq has a 1-year low of $64.84 and a 1-year high of $101.21.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. Nasdaq had a net margin of 19.90% and a return on equity of 16.28%. Nasdaq’s revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Nasdaq will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Adena T. Friedman sold 300,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.39, for a total value of $28,917,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,924,903 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $185,541,400.17. This trade represents a 13.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Zecca sold 4,500 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.01, for a total value of $450,045.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 125,674 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,568,656.74. The trade was a 3.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 306,605 shares of company stock worth $29,546,812 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nasdaq

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its stake in Nasdaq by 72.7% during the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 285 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Front Row Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Nasdaq in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Nasdaq in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Nasdaq in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

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.