Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $84.15 and last traded at $83.68, with a volume of 262137 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $82.86.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays decreased their target price on Nasdaq from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James increased their price objective 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. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of Nasdaq in a research note on Monday, November 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Argus upped their price target on shares of Nasdaq from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Nasdaq from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Nasdaq has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.88.

Nasdaq Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $79.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $75.38. The firm has a market cap of $47.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.99.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.02. Nasdaq had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 14.82%. On average, research analysts forecast that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 1.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In other Nasdaq news, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 12,075 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.75, for a total value of $950,906.25. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 102,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,072,268.75. This trade represents a 10.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Bryan Everard Smith sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,532,778.56. This represents a 5.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nasdaq

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Olstein Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Nasdaq by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 80,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,185,000 after acquiring an additional 21,000 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 75.7% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 53,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,170,000 after purchasing an additional 23,244 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the fourth quarter valued at $856,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 49.8% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 164,179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,987,000 after purchasing an additional 54,594 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cumberland Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in Nasdaq in the third quarter worth about $10,400,000. Institutional investors 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.