MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX) Stock Holdings Trimmed by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX) by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 45,318 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,598 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.12% of MarketAxess worth $9,088,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MKTX. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in MarketAxess by 155.8% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of MarketAxess by 2,428.6% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in MarketAxess by 405.1% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in MarketAxess during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC lifted its position in MarketAxess by 47.4% in the second quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. 99.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MarketAxess Price Performance

Shares of MKTX opened at $256.85 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $226.53 and its 200-day moving average is $215.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.91 and a quick ratio of 2.91. The company has a market capitalization of $9.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.72, a P/E/G ratio of 5.69 and a beta of 1.07. MarketAxess Holdings Inc. 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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.04. MarketAxess had a net margin of 33.71% and a return on equity of 20.43%. The company had revenue of $197.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $198.07 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that MarketAxess Holdings Inc. will post 7.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MarketAxess declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 6th that allows the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 2.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

MarketAxess Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a dividend of $0.74 per share. This is a boost from MarketAxess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.15%. MarketAxess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MarketAxess

In other 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 transaction of $142,915.71. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly 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 this link. Corporate insiders own 2.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on MKTX. StockNews.com raised MarketAxess from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of MarketAxess from $218.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of MarketAxess from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of MarketAxess in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of MarketAxess from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, MarketAxess currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $238.60.

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.