Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Free Report) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,998,528 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 24,018 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.35% of Nasdaq worth $145,913,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NDAQ. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in Nasdaq by 312.0% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 183,849 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $11,601,000 after purchasing an additional 139,228 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its holdings in Nasdaq by 237.3% in the 1st quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 30,845 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,946,000 after acquiring an additional 21,699 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Nasdaq by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 517,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,624,000 after acquiring an additional 57,900 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in Nasdaq during the first quarter valued at about $2,595,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in shares of Nasdaq by 55.8% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 27,622 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,743,000 after purchasing an additional 9,894 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.47% of the company's stock.
Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Nasdaq from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nasdaq from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Nasdaq from $81.00 to $80.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of Nasdaq from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $82.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.33.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on Nasdaq
In other Nasdaq news, insider Pc Nelson Griggs sold 6,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.71, for a total value of $454,260.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 215,563 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,320,274.73. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Nasdaq news, insider Pc Nelson Griggs sold 6,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.71, for a total value of $454,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 215,563 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,320,274.73. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.92, for a total transaction of $935,040.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 114,580 shares in the company, valued at $8,928,073.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 37,384 shares of company stock worth $2,860,902 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.
Nasdaq stock opened at $78.69 on Friday. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 52-week low of $51.30 and a 52-week high of $79.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $73.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.95.
Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. Nasdaq had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 14.56%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.71 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 2.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. Nasdaq's payout ratio is currently 57.49%.
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.
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