Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Sells 99 Shares of MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund lowered its holdings in shares of MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX) by 7.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 99 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in MarketAxess were worth $274,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in MarketAxess by 347.6% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 94 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in MarketAxess by 1,030.8% during the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in MarketAxess by 155.8% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in MarketAxess by 2,428.6% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in MarketAxess during the fourth quarter worth $47,000. Institutional investors own 99.01% of the company’s stock.

MarketAxess Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MKTX traded down $3.28 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $222.35. 76,894 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 422,236. The stock has a market cap of $8.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.65, a PEG ratio of 5.99 and a beta of 1.03. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $206.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $217.14. MarketAxess Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $192.42 and a 1-year high of $297.97.

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $210.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $212.99 million. MarketAxess had a net margin of 33.83% and a return on equity of 20.82%. The business’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.96 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that MarketAxess Holdings Inc. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MarketAxess Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 22nd were given a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 21st. MarketAxess’s payout ratio is currently 43.47%.

Insider Activity at MarketAxess

In related news, Director Stephen P. Casper sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.48, for a total transaction of $99,740.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,034,895.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MKTX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of MarketAxess from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of MarketAxess from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of MarketAxess from $305.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of MarketAxess from $230.00 to $225.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of MarketAxess in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $199.00 price target for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $241.00.

About MarketAxess

MarketAxess Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates an electronic trading platform for institutional investor and broker-dealer companies worldwide. The company offers trading technology that provides liquidity access in U.S. high-grade bonds, U.S. high-yield bonds, emerging market debt, eurobonds, municipal bonds, U.S.