Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) had its price target hoisted by equities researchers at Citigroup from $78.00 to $84.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 10.06% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on NDAQ. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Nasdaq from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com raised Nasdaq from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 14th. William Blair began coverage on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Monday, November 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Argus increased their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Nasdaq from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.60.

Nasdaq Price Performance

Shares of NDAQ stock traded down $1.70 during trading on Friday, hitting $76.32. The company had a trading volume of 1,381,792 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,689,744. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $79.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. Nasdaq has a 52 week low of $54.90 and a 52 week high of $83.77.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.05. Nasdaq had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 14.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.71 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Nasdaq will post 2.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nasdaq

In other news, EVP Bradley J. Peterson sold 13,642 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.32, for a total transaction of $1,027,515.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 142,830 shares in the company, valued at $10,757,955.60. This trade represents a 8.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jeremy Skule sold 12,075 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 102,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,072,268.75. The trade was a 10.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 49,459 shares of company stock valued at $3,811,808. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nasdaq

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Nasdaq during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd lifted its position in Nasdaq by 94.8% during the second quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 415 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. Claro Advisors LLC bought a new position in Nasdaq during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Focused Wealth Management Inc purchased a new stake in Nasdaq in the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Nasdaq in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.