Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Nasdaq's (NDAQ) Q4 Earnings & Revenues Top Estimates, Rise Y/Y

Read MoreHide Full Article

Nasdaq (NDAQ - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2023 adjusted earnings per share of 72 cents, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.9%. The bottom line improved 12.5% year over year.

The improvement was mainly driven by organic growth and solid results in the Solutions segment.

Shares gained 0.3% in the pre-market trading session to reflect the outperformance.

Nasdaq, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise Nasdaq, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Nasdaq, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Nasdaq, Inc. Quote

Performance in Detail

Nasdaq’s revenues of $1.1 billion increased 23% year over year. The upside can primarily be attributed to a 7% impact from organic growth, net benefit from acquisitions and divestitures, including Adenza, and a $4 million increase from the impact of changes in FX rates. The top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 5%.

Annualized Recurring Revenue (ARR) increased 29% year over year. Annualized SaaS revenues increased 23% and represented 35% of ARR.

Market Services net revenues were $247 million, up 1%. The increase reflects $1 million in organic growth and a $1 million positive impact from changes in FX rates.

Revenues at the Solutions business increased 32% year over year to $860 million, reflecting growth from the Capital Access Platforms and Financial Technology divisions. Organic growth was 9%.

Adjusted operating expenses were $504 million, up 9.6% from the year-ago period. The increase primarily reflects the inclusion of $35 million of Adenza operating expenses, expenses associated with the continued investment to drive long-term growth, higher computer operations and data costs and higher depreciation. Our estimate for operating expenses was $479.5 million.

Operating margin of 55% expanded 600 basis points year over year.

The Nasdaq stock market welcomed 100 new company listings in the fourth quarter of 2023, including 28 initial public offerings. The number of listed companies was 4,044 at quarter end.

Full-Year Highlights

For 2023, the company reported adjusted earnings per share of $2.82, up 6% year over year. The figure also beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.80.

Net revenues were $3.9 billion, up 9% year over year and reflected an organic increase of 5%. Solutions revenues increased 13%, with organic growth of 7%. Market Services net revenues were flat on a reported and organic basis. ARR was $2.6 billion. Net revenues beat the Zacks Consensus estimate of $3.8 billion.

Operating margin of 53% expanded 100 basis points year over year.

The Nasdaq stock market welcomed 100 new company listings, including 28 initial public offerings. The number of listed companies was 4,044 at quarter end.

Financial Update

Nasdaq had cash and cash equivalents of $473 million as of Dec 31, 2023, down from $524 million at 2022-end. Long-term debt increased to $10.2 billion, as of Dec 31, 2023, from $4.7 billion at 2022 end.

Nasdaq generated $1.7 billion in cash flow from operations.

Capital Deployment

Nasdaq returned $127 million to shareholders in the fourth quarter of 2023 through dividends and $11 million in share buyback.

The board of directors approved a dividend of 22 cents per share. The dividend will be paid out on Mar 28, 2023, to shareholders of record at the close of business on Mar 14, 2024.

As of Dec 31, 2023, $1.9 billion remained under the board-authorized share repurchase program.

Guidance

Nasdaq expects 2024 non-GAAP operating expenses to be in the range of $2.105 billion to $2.185 billion.

Nasdaq forecasts 2024 non-GAAP tax rate in the range of 24.5-26.5%.

Zacks Rank

Nasdaq carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) currently. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of a Peer

MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (MKTX - Free Report) reported strong fourth-quarter 2023 results aided by higher commissions and trading volumes. Continued solid Eurobonds’ performance further aided its business. The positives were partially offset by an elevated expense level and a lower High-yield credit trading.

Its fourth-quarter 2023 earnings per share of $1.84 beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 7%. Moreover, the bottom line increased from $1.58 per share a year ago.

Total revenues increased 10.9% year over year to $197.2 million in the quarter under review. Also, the top line beat the consensus mark by 0.7%.

Upcoming Releases

CME Group Inc. (CME - Free Report) is slated to release fourth-quarter 2023 earnings on Feb 14. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the fourth quarter is pegged at $2.27 per share, indicating an increase of 18.2% from the year-ago reported figure.

CME Group delivered an earnings surprise in the three reported quarters of 2023.

Cboe Global Markets, Inc. (CBOE - Free Report) is set to release fourth-quarter 2023 earnings on Feb 2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the fourth quarter is pegged at $2.02, indicating an increase of 12.2% from the year-ago reported figure.

CBOE delivered an earnings surprise in the three reported quarters of 2023.

Published in