Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Shares Purchased by Wedbush Securities Inc.

Wedbush Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) by 27.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,665 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Nasdaq were worth $283,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Founders Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Nasdaq by 106.6% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the period. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Nasdaq during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. 72.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nasdaq Price Performance

NASDAQ:NDAQ opened at $71.99 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $77.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $77.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.02. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 12-month low of $58.10 and a 12-month high of $84.15.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.02. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 14.82% and a net margin of 15.10%. On average, analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.33%. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nasdaq news, EVP Sarah Youngwood sold 14,959 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.68, for a total transaction of $1,102,179.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 59,694 shares in the company, valued at $4,398,253.92. This trade represents a 20.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Bryan Everard Smith sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.56, for a total value of $285,460.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,532,778.56. This trade represents a 5.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,116 shares of company stock worth $1,434,818 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NDAQ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays decreased their price objective on Nasdaq from $95.00 to $87.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Raymond James raised their price objective on Nasdaq from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Nasdaq from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Nasdaq from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $74.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Nasdaq from $84.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.88.

About Nasdaq

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.