Forsta AP Fonden Grows Stake in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ)

Forsta AP Fonden increased its stake in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 89,700 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,800 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in Nasdaq were worth $6,935,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Nasdaq during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Founders Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Claro Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Nasdaq by 106.6% in the fourth 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 period. Finally, Focused Wealth Management Inc bought a new stake in Nasdaq in the third quarter valued at $35,000. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nasdaq Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of Nasdaq stock traded down $0.20 on Tuesday, reaching $81.72. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,669,009 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,824,583. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52 week low of $54.90 and a 52 week high of $83.77. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $79.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $75.13. 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 company has a market capitalization of $46.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.99.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on NDAQ. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Nasdaq from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Nasdaq from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Nasdaq from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Nasdaq from $79.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Nasdaq from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Nasdaq presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $86.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nasdaq news, EVP Bryan Everard Smith sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.56, for a total value of $285,460.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,532,778.56. This trade represents a 5.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 12,075 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.75, for a total transaction of $950,906.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 102,505 shares in the company, valued at $8,072,268.75. This represents a 10.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 33,317 shares of company stock valued at $2,615,493. Company 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.