Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Stock Gets Price Target Reduction from Morgan Stanley

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) had its target price reduced by Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $118.00 in a report published on Friday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on NDAQ. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $108.00 price target (up from $104.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $105.00 price target (up from $101.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $110.00 price target on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Nasdaq from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $109.00 price objective (down from $111.00) on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $108.92.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

Nasdaq stock opened at $93.65 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $94.77 and a 200-day moving average of $90.31. 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 company has a market capitalization of $52.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.99.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.09. Nasdaq had a net margin of 22.60% and a return on equity of 18.38%. The business had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.85 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Nasdaq will post 4.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 11th. Nasdaq’s payout ratio is currently 36.15%.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In other Nasdaq news, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 1,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $106,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 100,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,506,935. This trade represents a 1.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Bradley Peterson sold 13,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The stock was 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 approximately $11,881,214.73. The trade was a 9.20% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 44,047 shares of company stock worth $4,139,191 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nasdaq

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Nasdaq in the second quarter worth $2,931,637,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Nasdaq in the second quarter valued at $603,631,000. Nuveen LLC increased its stake in Nasdaq by 82.0% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 6,073,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $589,897,000 after purchasing an additional 2,736,322 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the second quarter valued at about $377,818,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 4.8% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,884,101 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $306,145,000 after purchasing an additional 177,114 shares during the period. 72.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Nasdaq

Nasdaq, Inc is a global financial technology, market infrastructure and exchange company headquartered in New York City. The company operates Nasdaq stock exchanges in the United States and provides trading, clearing, settlement, listing and market data services. Through its Nordic and Baltic operations, Nasdaq also serves financial markets across Northern Europe.

Nasdaq’s business includes exchange and market services, index development, investment intelligence, and technology solutions for exchanges, brokers, banks, asset managers and other financial institutions.