GHP Investment Advisors Inc. Boosts Stake in Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ)

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 19.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 133,504 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 21,768 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Nasdaq were worth $10,321,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,975 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. First Pacific Financial lifted its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 1.0% during the third quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 13,842 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,011,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Nasdaq by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 9,818 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $759,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in shares of Nasdaq by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,899 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $147,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crestwood Advisors Group LLC grew its position in Nasdaq by 4.2% in the third quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $268,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on NDAQ. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nasdaq from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, December 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Nasdaq from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Argus raised their target price on Nasdaq from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, William Blair initiated coverage on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Monday, November 25th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nasdaq currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $86.88.

Nasdaq Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of Nasdaq stock traded down $1.61 during trading on Monday, hitting $81.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,766,989 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,807,625. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.99. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $79.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.56. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52 week low of $54.90 and a 52 week high of $84.15. The company has a market capitalization of $46.68 billion, a PE ratio of 42.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.99.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.02. Nasdaq had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 14.82%. Equities research analysts predict that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Announces Dividend

The company 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 1.18%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Nasdaq's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 12,075 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 102,505 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,072,268.75. This trade represents a 10.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.