Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Reaches New 52-Week High After Dividend Announcement

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $71.16 and last traded at $71.06, with a volume of 572683 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.59.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. Nasdaq's payout ratio is 50.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on NDAQ shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Argus increased their price objective on Nasdaq from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Nasdaq from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Nasdaq from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities downgraded Nasdaq from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $64.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.54.

Nasdaq Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $40.87 billion, a PE ratio of 37.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.94. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $64.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.13 billion. Nasdaq had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 15.45%. The firm's revenue was up 25.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 2.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Nasdaq news, major shareholder Seller Lp Argus sold 42,804,207 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.58, for a total value of $2,764,295,688.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,804,207 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,764,295,688.06. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nasdaq

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Nasdaq during the second quarter worth approximately $291,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Nasdaq by 65.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 2,814 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $170,000 after buying an additional 1,112 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in Nasdaq by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 60,124 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,624,000 after acquiring an additional 3,398 shares during the period. Creative Planning increased its holdings in Nasdaq by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 51,442 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,100,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. raised its position in Nasdaq by 24.4% during the second quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 783,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $47,184,000 after acquiring an additional 153,807 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company's stock.

Nasdaq Company Profile

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.