Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Lowered to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday morning,Zacks reports.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on NDAQ. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $111.00 price objective (up from $108.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $105.00 target price (up from $101.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $113.00 price target (up from $111.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Nasdaq from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.30.

Nasdaq Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:NDAQ opened at $94.50 on Monday. Nasdaq has a 1 year low of $76.55 and a 1 year high of $101.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The business’s 50-day moving average is $94.83 and its 200-day moving average is $89.74. The company has a market capitalization of $52.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.97.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.09. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 18.38% and a net margin of 22.60%.The business had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.85 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Nasdaq will post 4.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Nasdaq’s payout ratio is currently 36.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Nasdaq news, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 1,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.22, for a total transaction of $105,997.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 101,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,534,875.56. This represents a 1.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bradley Peterson sold 13,000 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total transaction of $1,203,930.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 128,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,881,214.73. This represents a 9.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 42,922 shares of company stock worth $4,032,316 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nasdaq

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Nasdaq in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Reflection Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

Nasdaq Company Profile

Nasdaq, Inc (NASDAQ:NDAQ) operates financial markets and provides technology, data and analytics services to exchanges, brokers, institutional investors, corporations and other financial institutions. The company is best known for operating the Nasdaq Stock Market, a major U.S. equities exchange and a prominent venue for technology and growth companies.

Nasdaq’s businesses include listings, trading, market data, indexes, clearing and market infrastructure solutions. Through its technology platforms, the company provides exchange operators and financial institutions with systems for trading, surveillance, risk management, regulatory compliance and other market functions.