Rafferty Asset Management LLC Acquires 5,698 Shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 145,996 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,698 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Nasdaq were worth $11,287,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Nasdaq by 106.6% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $41,000. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nasdaq Price Performance

NDAQ opened at $81.90 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $75.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.92. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 1 year low of $58.28 and a 1 year high of $84.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.02 billion, a PE ratio of 42.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.00.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.02. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 14.82% and a net margin of 15.10%. The business had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.63 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is a positive change from Nasdaq’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%. Nasdaq’s payout ratio is presently 49.09%.

Insider Transactions at Nasdaq

In other news, EVP Bryan Everard Smith sold 657 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.81, for a total transaction of $47,179.17. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 61,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,450,783.80. The trade was a 1.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sarah Youngwood sold 14,959 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.68, for a total value of $1,102,179.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 59,694 shares in the company, valued at $4,398,253.92. The trade was a 20.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on NDAQ shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Nasdaq from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Nasdaq from $87.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Nasdaq from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 18th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on Nasdaq from $84.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.50.

Nasdaq Company Profile

Nasdaq, Inc operates as a technology company that serves capital markets and other industries worldwide. It operates in three segments: Capital Access Platforms, Financial Technology, and Market Services. The Capital Access Platforms segment sells and distributes historical and real-time market data; and develops and licenses Nasdaq-branded indices and financial products.