Nasdaq, Inc. (NDAQ) stock analysis

P/E above its 5-year median

Nasdaq's P/E of 29.7 is above its own 5-year median of 28.0.

P/E above the industry

Nasdaq's P/E of 29.7 is above the Security & commodity brokers, dealers, exchanges & services median of 25.1.

EV/EBITDA above its 5-year median

Nasdaq's EV/EBITDA of 23.6 is above its 5-year median of 23.3.

P/B above the industry

Nasdaq's price-to-book of 5.03 is above the Security & commodity brokers, dealers, exchanges & services median of 4.25.

Trading above fair value

The share price of $108.65 is above our fair value estimate of $85.68.

Margin of safety under 20%

The price is 26.8% above fair value, so there is no margin of safety.

Revenue growing under 10% a year

Revenue grew 9.9% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.

EPS growing 10%+ a year

Diluted EPS grew 11.0% a year over the last three fiscal years.

Earnings growth accelerating

Net income grew 28.2% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 13.9% a year.

Growing slower than the industry

Revenue grew 11.5% over the last twelve months; the Security & commodity brokers, dealers, exchanges & services median is 14.4%.

Guidance raised

Nasdaq raised its 2026 non-GAAP operating expense outlook on Jul 23, 2026.

Gross margin improving

Gross margin was 63.2% over the last twelve months, against 62.0% a year earlier.

Return on equity under 15%

Return on equity was 17.4% over the last twelve months and averaged 14.9% over five years; we look for 15% on both.

Return on capital over 10%

Return on invested capital was 10.7%, above the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.

Return on equity above the industry

Nasdaq's return on equity of 17.4% is above the Security & commodity brokers, dealers, exchanges & services median of 14.2%.

Earnings grew over 5 years

Net income grew 13.9% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.

Net margin above its 5-year average

Net margin was 22.8% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 18.5%.

Net margin above the industry

Nasdaq's net margin of 22.8% is above the Security & commodity brokers, dealers, exchanges & services median of 3.6%.

High debt

Debt is 72.8% of shareholders' equity, above the 40% we consider low.

Debt falling against equity

Debt to equity fell from 86.1% five years ago to 72.8%.

Debt covered by cash flow

Operating cash flow over the last twelve months equals 29.1% of total debt.

Interest well covered

Operating income covers interest expense 7.9 times.

Short-term assets cover short-term debts

Current assets are 1.00 times current liabilities.

Low bankruptcy risk

The Altman Z-score is 3.56; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.

Pays a dividend

Nasdaq paid dividends worth 1.1% of the share price over the last twelve months.

Yield below Treasuries

The 1.1% yield is below the 4.6% on a 1-year Treasury.

Yield below the top quarter

The top quarter of US dividend payers yield 3.9% or more; Nasdaq yields 1.1%.

Dividend not cut

The dividend per share has not fallen by more than 10% in any of the last 10 fiscal years.

Covered by earnings

Dividends take 31.3% of net income.

Covered by free cash flow

Dividends take 28.9% of free cash flow.