Insider Trading April 2, 2026

Nasdaq CEO Executes Option Exercise, Sells Shares in Matching Transaction

Adena T. Friedman converted options and sold 113,611 shares on April 1, 2026; firm reiterates medium-term growth targets and advances digital asset initiatives

By Derek Hwang NDAQ
Nasdaq CEO Executes Option Exercise, Sells Shares in Matching Transaction
NDAQ

Nasdaq Inc. Chair and CEO Adena T. Friedman executed employee stock options for 113,611 shares and concurrently sold the same number of shares on April 1, 2026. The stock sale generated $9.71 million at an average price of $85.44. Nasdaq also updated medium-term revenue guidance and disclosed partnerships and tokenization plans.

Key Points

  • Adena T. Friedman exercised options for 113,611 shares at $22.22 and sold 113,611 shares the same day at a weighted average of $85.44, generating $9,706,923 in proceeds.
  • Nasdaq raised its medium-term Solutions revenue growth outlook to 9-12% and maintained medium-term expense guidance of 5-8%; the company also reaffirmed its 2026 expense outlook.
  • Nasdaq is pursuing tokenization for equity processes and partnered with Talos to integrate digital asset infrastructure with Calypso and Trade Surveillance platforms, aimed at improving collateral management.

Insider moves

Adena T. Friedman, Chair and CEO of Nasdaq, Inc., completed a series of equity transactions on April 1, 2026. Friedman exercised employee stock options to acquire 113,611 shares at an exercise price of $22.22, resulting in a cash outlay of $2,524,436. On the same day she sold 113,611 shares of common stock at a weighted average sale price of $85.44, producing gross proceeds of $9,706,923. The disposition was carried out in multiple trades with individual prices reported between $85.00 and $85.88.

As part of routine equity award activity, Friedman was also credited with 39,929 restricted stock units (RSUs) under an equity incentive plan; those RSUs were recorded with a value of $0 in the disclosure. In the settlement of a prior award, 13,739 shares were withheld for tax obligations at a price of $84.89, for a reported withholding value of $1,166,303.

Following these movements, Friedman holds 1,991,941 shares of Nasdaq common stock directly. In addition, she indirectly owns two trust positions: 73,500 shares held in the A.T. Friedman Irrevocable Trust No.1 and 73,500 shares held in The A.T. Friedman Irrevocable Trust No.2.


Valuation and market metrics

The company’s shares are trading at a price to earnings ratio of 28. Nasdaq’s PEG ratio stands at 0.46, which the disclosure characterizes as suggesting attractive value relative to growth. Market capitalization for Nasdaq is listed at $49.3 billion, and the company receives a "GOOD" score for financial health in the referenced analysis.

That said, InvestingPro analysis included in the disclosure indicates the stock "appears overvalued at current levels." Investors are directed to Nasdaq’s Pro Research Report for further detail; the report is available for NDAQ and more than 1,400 other U.S. equities on the platform cited in the filing.


Corporate outlook and strategic initiatives

During its recent Investor Day, Nasdaq raised its medium-term Solutions revenue growth target to a range of 9 to 12 percent, up from the prior 8 to 11 percent estimate. The company affirmed medium-term expense guidance of 5 to 8 percent and reiterated its expense outlook for 2026.

Nasdaq highlighted expectations for continued expansion across its Capital Access Platforms and its Financial Technology business as drivers of the updated Solutions revenue outlook.

On the corporate innovation front, Nasdaq announced plans to design an equity token for public companies. The stated aim is to modernize corporate processes, including proxy voting and shareholder engagement, by incorporating tokenization while maintaining existing regulatory frameworks.

Separately, Nasdaq disclosed a partnership with Talos to integrate digital asset infrastructure into its Calypso and Trade Surveillance platforms. The initiative is presented as enhancing collateral management capabilities through tighter integration of digital asset operations and existing surveillance and post-trade systems.


Analyst note

Raymond James is cited as having reiterated an Outperform rating on Nasdaq with a price target of $109.00. The firm noted that Nasdaq’s revised medium-term financial outlook aligns with consensus expectations and reflects modest growth in total solutions revenue.

This set of insider transactions, guidance updates, and strategic product developments provides a contemporaneous view of executive equity activity alongside the company’s public growth targets and technology partnerships.

Risks

  • InvestingPro analysis included in the disclosure indicates the stock "appears overvalued at current levels," which may affect investor perception and valuation assessments. This primarily impacts equity investors and financial sector valuations.
  • The withheld shares for taxes and the RSUs recorded with a value of $0 reflect complexities in executive compensation settlement that could influence short-term share supply and tax-related liquidity dynamics in the market. This affects corporate governance and compensation observers in the financial sector.
  • Execution risk around new tokenization initiatives and integration of digital asset infrastructure could affect expected technology and product outcomes if regulatory or implementation challenges arise. This is relevant to fintech, digital asset, and market infrastructure participants.

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