Empowered Funds LLC Takes Position in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 28,507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,247,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Nasdaq in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new position in Nasdaq during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC acquired a new position in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac bought a new stake in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on NDAQ shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Friday, July 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price objective on Nasdaq in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $111.00 price objective (up from $108.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $113.00 target price (up from $111.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $110.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Nasdaq news, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 13,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total value of $1,203,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 128,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,881,214.73. This trade represents a 9.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Pc Nelson Griggs sold 11,010 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.35, for a total value of $1,060,813.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 205,001 shares in the company, valued at $19,751,846.35. The trade was a 5.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 41,797 shares of company stock worth $3,926,319 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Nasdaq Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NDAQ opened at $95.72 on Thursday. Nasdaq, Inc. has a one year low of $76.55 and a one 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 company has a market cap of $53.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.91, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.97. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $92.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $88.77.

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

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

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

Nasdaq 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.