Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) PT Raised to $74.00 at Barclays

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) had its target price hoisted by investment analysts at Barclays from $73.00 to $74.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 20.07% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on NDAQ. Argus upped their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Edward Jones began coverage on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Nasdaq from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $73.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Nasdaq from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Nasdaq from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $59.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.08.

Nasdaq Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NDAQ opened at $61.63 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $35.45 billion, a PE ratio of 32.44, a PEG ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Nasdaq has a 1-year low of $46.88 and a 1-year high of $64.25. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $60.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.24.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. Nasdaq had a return on equity of 17.00% and a net margin of 15.98%. Nasdaq’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.69 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Nasdaq will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In related news, EVP Bryan Everard Smith sold 3,036 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.89, for a total value of $181,826.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 58,636 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,511,710.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nasdaq

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NDAQ. Graham Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 14.3% during the third quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 23,289 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 2,919 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 6.0% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 79,058 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,841,000 after acquiring an additional 4,453 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the third quarter valued at $65,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Nasdaq during the fourth quarter valued at $87,000. Finally, DNB Asset Management AS raised its stake in Nasdaq by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 89,144 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,183,000 after buying an additional 1,482 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

About Nasdaq

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.