MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) Given “Neutral” Rating at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler reaffirmed their neutral rating on shares of MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has a $225.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on MKTX. Barclays cut their target price on MarketAxess from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on MarketAxess from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. StockNews.com lowered MarketAxess from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on MarketAxess from $278.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on MarketAxess from $305.00 to $285.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $238.10.

MarketAxess Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MKTX traded up $4.17 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $236.06. The stock had a trading volume of 255,802 shares, compared to its average volume of 424,040. The company has a market cap of $8.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.66, a PEG ratio of 5.87 and a beta of 1.03. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $209.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $215.11. MarketAxess has a fifty-two week low of $192.42 and a fifty-two week high of $297.97.

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.04. MarketAxess had a return on equity of 20.82% and a net margin of 33.83%. The firm had revenue of $197.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $198.07 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. MarketAxess’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that MarketAxess will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MarketAxess Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. This is an increase from MarketAxess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 21st. MarketAxess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.47%.

MarketAxess declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, August 6th that permits the company to repurchase $250.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 2.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Christophe Pierre Danie Roupie sold 617 shares of MarketAxess stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.63, for a total value of $142,915.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,409 shares in the company, valued at $1,716,146.67. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other MarketAxess news, insider Christophe Pierre Danie Roupie sold 617 shares of MarketAxess stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.63, for a total value of $142,915.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,409 shares in the company, valued at $1,716,146.67. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen P. Casper sold 500 shares of MarketAxess stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.48, for a total value of $99,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,034,895.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.66% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MarketAxess

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MKTX. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of MarketAxess by 347.6% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 94 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in MarketAxess by 155.8% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in MarketAxess by 1,030.8% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in MarketAxess during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in MarketAxess by 2,428.6% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. 99.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MarketAxess Company Profile

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.