Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Acquires 101,775 Shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 93.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 210,549 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 101,775 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board's holdings in Nasdaq were worth $16,278,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Nasdaq during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Founders Capital Management bought a new stake in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Nasdaq during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Nasdaq by 106.6% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 436 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nasdaq in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nasdaq Stock Performance

NDAQ stock traded up $0.62 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $75.36. 2,790,944 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,093,871. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52-week low of $58.28 and a 52-week high of $84.15. The stock's 50-day moving average is $75.19 and its 200 day moving average is $77.39. The stock has a market cap of $43.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.25, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.02. Nasdaq had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 14.82%. The company had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.22 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Nasdaq Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. This is a boost from Nasdaq's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Nasdaq's payout ratio is 50.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Barclays dropped their price target on Nasdaq from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Nasdaq from $84.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $85.18.

Insider Transactions at Nasdaq

In other news, EVP Bryan Everard Smith sold 657 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.81, for a total value of $47,179.17. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 61,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,450,783.80. This trade represents a 1.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sarah Youngwood sold 14,959 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 59,694 shares in the company, valued at $4,398,253.92. This trade represents a 20.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,116 shares of company stock valued at $1,434,818 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

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.