Insider Buying: Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Major Shareholder Acquires $4,882,116.36 in Stock

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) major shareholder Ab Investor acquired 56,782 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $85.98 per share, for a total transaction of $4,882,116.36. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 58,439,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,024,603,103.84. The trade was a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Nasdaq Trading Down 6.7%

Shares of Nasdaq stock opened at $83.29 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $88.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $90.07. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.09 and a 1 year high of $101.79. The stock has a market cap of $47.10 billion, a PE ratio of 25.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.97.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.03. Nasdaq had a net margin of 23.15% and a return on equity of 17.51%. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.79 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. This is a boost from Nasdaq’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio is 37.35%.

Key Headlines Impacting Nasdaq

Here are the key news stories impacting Nasdaq this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Nasdaq continues to post solid underlying fundamentals, with recent earnings beating estimates and revenue growth remaining strong, while analysts still have a generally constructive view on the stock. NDAQ Outperforms Industry, Trades at a Premium: How to Play the Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Nasdaq shareholders approved the board, pay package, and auditor slate, reducing near-term governance uncertainty. Nasdaq Shareholders Endorse Board, Pay and Auditor Slate
• Positive Sentiment: A major shareholder, AB Investor, bought additional NDAQ shares, which can be read as a vote of confidence in the company’s longer-term outlook. Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Major Shareholder Ab Investor Acquires 56,782 Shares
• Neutral Sentiment: Nasdaq rebalanced the Nasdaq 100, adding five new AI and space-related entrants; this is notable for index composition but not necessarily a direct earnings driver today. Nasdaq (NDAQ) Rebalances The Nasdaq 100 With 5 New AI And Space Entrants
• Negative Sentiment: Investors appear concerned that tokenized-stock and blockchain-based trading could increase competition for traditional exchanges, weighing on Nasdaq and other market-structure names. Nasdaq Slides as Tokenized-Stock Shakeup Clouds Exchange Outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Separate delisting notices for Smart Digital Group and QMMM highlight Nasdaq’s regulatory enforcement activity, but they are more likely a reminder of exchange oversight than a direct driver of NDAQ’s business outlook. Smart Digital Group Limited Notified of Anticipated Delisting from The Nasdaq Stock Market QMMM Holdings Limited Notified of Anticipated Delisting from The Nasdaq Stock Market

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $109.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nasdaq from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. Loop Capital set a $113.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.36.

Institutional Trading of Nasdaq

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,855,235 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $277,329,000 after buying an additional 45,783 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 61,076 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,933,000 after buying an additional 13,160 shares in the last quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the fourth quarter worth about $1,245,000. Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the fourth quarter worth about $4,872,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 129.2% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 55,134 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,877,000 after buying an additional 31,081 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

About Nasdaq

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.