Algert Global LLC Acquires 635 Shares of MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX)

Algert Global LLC boosted its holdings in MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX) by 4.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 635 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC’s holdings in MarketAxess were worth $3,114,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MarketAxess by 155.8% in 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 last quarter. Goodman Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in MarketAxess during the second quarter worth $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in MarketAxess by 2,428.6% in 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 last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of MarketAxess by 405.1% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of MarketAxess by 47.4% during the 2nd 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 last quarter. 99.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at MarketAxess

In other MarketAxess news, insider Christophe Pierre Danie Roupie sold 617 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.63, for a total transaction of $142,915.71. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,409 shares in the company, valued at $1,716,146.67. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

MarketAxess Price Performance

Shares of MarketAxess stock opened at $255.85 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $241.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $220.11. MarketAxess Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $192.42 and a twelve month high of $297.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.04 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 2.91, a current ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $197.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $198.07 million. MarketAxess had a net margin of 33.71% and a return on equity of 20.43%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.63 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that MarketAxess Holdings Inc. will post 7.06 EPS for the current year.

MarketAxess announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, August 6th that allows the company to repurchase $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 2.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

MarketAxess Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a $0.74 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. This is a boost from MarketAxess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. MarketAxess’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on MarketAxess from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of MarketAxess in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on MarketAxess from $218.00 to $223.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of MarketAxess from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of MarketAxess from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report 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.com, MarketAxess has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $239.40.

MarketAxess 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.