Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft Increases MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) Price Target to $223.00

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) had its price target boosted by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $218.00 to $223.00 in a research note published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Piper Sandler reissued a neutral rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of MarketAxess in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Barclays cut their price target on MarketAxess from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. StockNews.com raised MarketAxess from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. UBS Group cut their price objective on MarketAxess from $305.00 to $285.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of MarketAxess from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, MarketAxess presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $238.60.

MarketAxess Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MKTX opened at $234.00 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $213.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $213.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.36, a PEG ratio of 5.87 and a beta of 1.03. MarketAxess has a 52-week low of $192.42 and a 52-week high of $297.97.

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

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

MarketAxess Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.74 per share. This is a positive change from MarketAxess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 21st. MarketAxess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.47%.

Insider Transactions at MarketAxess

In other MarketAxess news, insider Christophe Pierre Danie Roupie sold 617 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.63, for a total value of $142,915.71. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,716,146.67. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Stephen P. Casper sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.48, for a total transaction of $99,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,034,895.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christophe Pierre Danie Roupie sold 617 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.63, for a total transaction of $142,915.71. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,716,146.67. 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 institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MKTX. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of MarketAxess in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $7,866,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of MarketAxess by 174.2% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,478,000 after purchasing an additional 4,284 shares during the last quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. raised its holdings in MarketAxess by 84.0% during the 4th quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 9,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,888,000 after buying an additional 4,502 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its position in MarketAxess by 27.9% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 96,476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,253,000 after buying an additional 21,041 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in MarketAxess by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 176,144 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,584,000 after buying an additional 5,859 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.01% of the company’s stock.

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.