Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft Upgrades Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) to Buy

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has $98.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $80.00.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Nasdaq from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Nasdaq from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Nasdaq from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Bank of America cut their target price on Nasdaq from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Nasdaq from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.60.

Nasdaq Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of NDAQ opened at $75.88 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $79.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.98. Nasdaq has a 12-month low of $54.90 and a 12-month high of $83.77.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 14.56% and a net margin of 13.67%. Nasdaq’s quarterly revenue was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.71 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Nasdaq will post 2.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. Nasdaq’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.49%.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In other news, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 13,642 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.32, for a total value of $1,027,515.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 142,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,757,955.60. This trade represents a 8.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 12,075 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.75, for a total value of $950,906.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 102,505 shares in the company, 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. Insiders sold a total of 49,459 shares of company stock valued at $3,811,808 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nasdaq

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its stake in Nasdaq by 94.8% in the second quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 415 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Claro Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nasdaq during the third quarter worth $33,000. Focused Wealth Management Inc bought a new stake in Nasdaq in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Nasdaq in the third quarter valued at about $42,000. 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.