Citigroup Inc. Decreases Stake in Nasdaq, Inc. $NDAQ

Citigroup Inc. lessened its position in shares of Nasdaq, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 347,299 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 64,456 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc. owned about 0.06% of Nasdaq worth $30,719,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 3.8% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 14,574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,106,000 after purchasing an additional 538 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its position in Nasdaq by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 34,962 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,652,000 after purchasing an additional 10,110 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in shares of Nasdaq by 22.0% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 14,351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,089,000 after buying an additional 2,584 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Nasdaq by 345.5% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 597 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC raised its position in shares of Nasdaq by 51.1% during the 2nd quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 8,648 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $773,000 after buying an additional 2,923 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Nasdaq

In other Nasdaq news, CEO Adena T. Friedman sold 300,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.39, for a total transaction of $28,917,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,924,903 shares in the company, valued at $185,541,400.17. This trade represents a 13.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Zecca sold 4,500 shares of Nasdaq stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.01, for a total value of $450,045.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 125,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,568,656.74. This trade represents a 3.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 604,500 shares of company stock worth $58,440,045. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Nasdaq Stock Up 3.6%

Shares of NDAQ opened at $83.99 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $93.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.02. Nasdaq, Inc. has a 12-month low of $64.84 and a 12-month high of $101.79.

Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.92 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.37 billion. Nasdaq had a net margin of 21.77% and a return on equity of 16.90%. The firm’s revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Nasdaq, Inc. will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Nasdaq Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Nasdaq’s payout ratio is presently 34.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on NDAQ shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $109.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $108.00 target price on shares of Nasdaq in a research report on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Nasdaq from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Nasdaq to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Nasdaq presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.73.

About Nasdaq

Nasdaq, Inc is a global financial technology company that operates one of the world’s leading electronic securities exchanges and provides a broad array of products and services to capital markets participants. Its core activities include operating the Nasdaq Stock Market and other trading venues, developing and supplying market technology and matching engines to exchanges and trading firms, licensing market data and indices, and offering clearing, trade execution and post-trade solutions. The company also provides market surveillance, risk management and regulatory technology used by exchanges and regulators.

Founded in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) as the first electronic stock market, Nasdaq has evolved into a diversified marketplace and technology provider.